Sidekick, No More
by Blackbird
Summary: After a mission goes horrible wrong, Ron ends up hospitalized and questioning his place in the new Team Possible and heroics in general.
1. It All Begins With A Bang

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kim Possible. She is owned by Disney and Mark McCorkle and Bob Schooley. Any original characters shown or mentioned belong to me and can not be used without permission. Got it?_

**Sidekick, No More**

**Chapter 1: It All Begins With A Bang**

"Why are we doing this again?" Shego asked as she held up her hands in a defensive pose, her familiar green and black flames engulfing them.

"Because if you really want to get back out in the field you're going to need some intensive training," Kim explained as she held her hands in a similar fashion and pressed her back up against the taller woman's.

"Isn't that what we've _been_ doing down in the basement?"

"Well yeah but this scenario provides us with some other opponents so we'll learn how well we can actually work together."

"Alright with you so far, but still seriously, _this_?"

Kim looked out at the cache of colorful characters around them. They were a group of super heroes collectively known as The Justice Squad. They were a special team assembled by Global Justice to help deal with... "unique problems". The kind usually reserved for Kim herself. Of course since she had been helping Shego with Shin for the last few months, she had to cut back on the world saving business. But now that Shego felt comfortable letting someone else take care of Shin and that she had gotten herself back into fighting shape they were both ready to get back out there and kick some bad guy butt. They just had to get some more training in first.

"Oh come on Shego, this will be good practice for both our teams," Kim remarked. "It'll teach us how well we can work together and Dr. Director said they _did_ want to train the Justice Squad against some formidable opponents and who's more formidable than us?"

Shego quirked an eyebrow as she mulled over that statement.

"Well you gotta a point there," she relented.

"Of course I do. So then...on three?"

"Yep."

"One..." Kim started.

"Two..." Shego continued.

"_Three_!" they both finished.

With their unified shout they sprang into action. Kim rushed forward to meet Catgirl head on while avoiding the stony giant called Stonehenge. Shego, on the other hand, fired two of her plasma blasts up to the floating White Knight, who let out a slight groan of pain as he flew backwards. Before she could try again, Spyder quickly webbed up both of her hands. She growled then flared her hands again, melting away the sticky cocoon.

"Well...that's never happened before," the Irish hero muttered.

"Yeah, a _lot_ of guys say that," Shego smirked.

"Ooooh cheeky. I like that in a women."

"Trust me, _you're_ not my type."

Spyder shrugged. "Can't blame a bloke for tryin'."

"Oh yes I can."

The redheaded man grinned beneath his mask.

_Definitely a girl I could get ta like,_ he thought in amusement. _But fer now..._

He crouched down slightly, then sprang forward with a powerful leap like the animal he drew his name from. He outstretched his right leg into a fly kick maneuver but Shego was ready for him. She extinguished her flames just in time to catch his foot then twisted towards the right, using his own momentum to fling him across the room. With an agility and grace that made even Kim a bit jealous, Spyder twisted and turned his body in mid flight so he landed perfectly in a crouched position. He jumped back into the air to recover the distance lost, but again Shego was there. She leapt herself and the two sailed right towards each other. The pale green woman lashed out just a bit more quickly and her right fist landed squarely on his jaw. This time, Spyder's landing was not as graceful as he landed flat on his back.

"Ow," he muttered as he sat up and rubbed his sore jaw. "Ya do know this suppose ta be just a friendly trainin' exercise, right lass?"

"I like to play rough," Shego quipped.

Spyder shrugged. "Well...never could turn down a girl like that."

Shego smirked at him then raised her hands over her head and lit them up again. Before she could unleash another shot of plasma though, a blast of white energy struck the floor in front of her which caused her to jump back. She turned her head to find White Knight floating above her again, his hands a glow with his own unique energy powers.

"I thought I took care of you already!" she growled.

"I'm not that easy to knock down," he retorted.

"Good. Cause I'm a girl who loves a challenge," she snarled, lighting her hands again.

"Bring it on," he challenge good naturedly, his own hands glower brighter.

As Shego struggled against the two male members of the Squad, Kim had her own hands full dealing with Catgirl. It was actually quite impressive. The girl had obviously improved a great deal since they last met. Of course Kim hadn't actually fought her but from what she remembered seeing, Catgirl was doing a lot better. Naturally she still wasn't as good as Kim herself, but she was certainly coming along.

"Wow, you've gotten a lot better," the redhead complimented as she ducked another high sweep kick.

"Really? You think so?" Catgirl asked, blocking a right hand from her opponent.

"Oh yeah. Not a lot of people can come up with me but you're doing pretty good," she commented as she caught a slashing arm and tossed the girl over her shoulder.

Catgirl landed with all the grace of her namesake then did a back flip in an effort to strike Kim on the shoulders with her legs. Kim crossed her arms over her head to block the attack then threw her arms out to flip the other girl again, this time causing her to fall on her back.

"Hey thanks, that means a lot coming from you," she beamed then rolled over and jumped back up to her feet.

The two engaged each other again, trading hits and kicks with Kim putting Catgirl on the defensive. Despite that fact though they continued to make small talk.

"So did you ever find out what happened to Sheela?" Kim asked as she throw a right hook.

The costumed girl side stepped the blow then threw out her left hand to try to land a punch of her own.

"Nah, didn't find anything. But don't worry, she'll turn up. She _always_ does," she answered in a slightly annoyed tone.

The redhead blocked the punch and spun her opponent around.

"Yeah they do it that," she remarked.

Before Catgirl could come up with another retort a loud, irritated growl tear through the air as a large, stony fist smashed into the floor between the two girls. Kim looked up to see the other member of the Justice Squad she had to deal with the massive rock giant Stonehenge. He looked between them, his brilliant blue eyes looking a bit wired.

"Sorry kiddo," he said as he turned his head towards Catgirl. "You know I like you and all but I just never could stand this whole 'teen girl talk' thing."

"Yeah I got ya," she replied as she eyed Kim. "He's got a point, we _should_ be sparring more."

"Sounds fine to me," Kim remarked as she took a fighting stance.

She eyed up her two opponents as she thought over her next move. Based on just the easy sparring she had been doing with Catgirl she was sure she could take her with little problems. Stonehenge on the other hand represented a _big_ problem. She couldn't just outright attack him because it'd be like...well it'd be like hitting a brick wall. Fortunately she had learned a long time ago how to use an opponent's size and strength against them. She dodged a few of the punches he threw at her, or more accurately the floor, as well as the attacks from Catgirl as she waited for the right moment to strike. Thankfully that opportunity presented itself sooner than she expected. She watched as Stonehenge brought up his massive right leg, most likely in an attempt to shake the ground and throw her off balance. After brushing off another claw sweep from Catgirl she quickly slid under the stone giant's foot right as he was about to bring it down.

Stonehenge noticed the teen hero sliding under his foot and barely stopped his heavy leg in time. He waved his arms to try to keep his balance as he continued to hold his foot up, unsure if Kim had moved out from under him or not. It turned out she had not and in fact the redhead had twisted herself so she could plant the soles of her feet against his. She braced her against the floor and pushed up with all the strength she could muster. Beads of sweat ran over her forehead from the all the hard work but eventually it paid off and the stone giant began to topple over. He let out a surprised screech before he fell to the floor with a thunderous "bang".

Ironically enough his plan actually worked and the floor shook enough to throw the other combatants off balance. Unfortunately most of the people effected were his own teammates. Kim stayed low to the ground to keep from being too effected. When she noticed Catgirl looking unsteady on her feet, she smirked then swung a leg forward in a sweep kick that easily knocked down the startled super heroine.

On the other side of the room, Shego took advantage of the distraction as well and grabbed Spyder by his outstretched right arm. She then summoned up all her strength so she could spin him around and launch him towards White Knight, who was looking over his fallen teammates from above the training room. He was too surprised by the unorthodox move to try to avoid his flying teammate and the two groaned as the wind was knocked out of them when they collided. They fell to the ground in an undignified mess of tangled limps.

"Well _that_ was embarrassin'," Spyder muttered as he tried to pick himself up.

As the battered super heroes started to pull themselves back up, Kim and Shego regrouped in the center of the training floor.

"Nice on Kimmie," Shego complimented.

"Not too shabby yourself," Kim returned with a nod. "Seems like you're getting the hang of this again."

"Hey I never _lost _my skills. They just got stored away for awhile."

"Uh huh," the redhead remarked as she turned her attention back to the regrouping costumed heroes. "Looks like round two's about to start."

"Fine by me," Shego said as she dropped into a defensive stance. "Though I can't help but notice that someone's missing here."

"Yeah I noticed it too," Kim agreed, taking a similar stance. "I wonder where Ron could be?"

"Probably ran off with his tail between his legs somewhere."

The redhead narrowed her eyes dangerously. "Shego..."

"Yeah, yeah, don't mock the sidekick," the pale green woman recited in a bored tone. "So then _you_ tell me where he could be."

"I dunno. But if I remember correctly I think there's a member of the Justice Squad missing too. Maybe he's taking care of her."

Shego snorted. "Sure, keep telling yourself that Kimmie."

Kim was about to offer a retort but she was distracted when Spyder leapt at her. She ducked low to avoid the flying tackle then stood up and launched herself at him, hoping to catch him off guard. And with that the fight continued on.

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As the two teams continued to struggle with one another on the training floor below, they were unaware that they were being watched from the rafters above them. Longbow sat in a crouched position and observed the fighters below. She focused her keen eyes on Kim and Shego, just waiting for the right opportunity to strike. She had her bow already in hand and slowly drew it back as she sense the moment approaching. Naturally she wasn't using her regular arrows but rather ones with soft, blunt tips specifically designed for these training sessions. They might hurt and leave some welts but that was preferable to impaling themselves in someone's skin. She closed her left eye to help her focused and looked down the shaft of the arrow and past her outstretched figure to her target. Which just happened to be Kim. The younger redhead was busying dodging Spyder's attacks that she left a huge opening on her right side for someone to exploit. Longbow fully intended to be that someone.

Unfortunately she was so focused on her attack that she left her own side wide open for attack. That attack came in the form of a small, pink thing that quickly flew past her line of sight and severed the string on her bow. She let out a startled gasp as the arrow fell harmlessly from her hand and the rafters to the floor below. She looked at the broken string then to where she though the object landed and was surprised to see a naked mole rat smiling back up at her, its teeth gleaming in the overhead lights.

"Hiya!" Rufus greeted cheerfully.

"What the...?" Longbow asked, cocking her right eyebrow over her blue domino mask.

"Way to go Rufus!" another voice cheered from her left side.

She snapped her head in the direction of the voice to see Ron standing on the other side of the rafter right in front of one of the support beams. Thinking quickly she tossed aside her broken bow then drew her mini crossbow and aimed it at the hyper active blond. Ron let out a shriek of terror as a series of sharp tipped arrows flew his way. He closed his eyes and prepared for the worst pain her had ever felt in his life, but thankfully only heard several metallic "pings" all around him. He then noticed he had trouble moving his arms and legs. He opened his eyes and looked down at himself, seeing that his sleeves and pants legs were pinned against the beam by the mini arrows. He struggled to free himself for a few moments and finally succeeded at the price of his clothes.

"Oooh man!" he cried out as he tried to cover his smiley face covered boxers from Longbow.

Despite herself, Longbow couldn't help but chuckle a bit at the sight even as she held a hand over her eyes and politely turned away.

"Serves you right," she chided with an amused smile. "Do you have _any_ idea how hard it is to restring that bow?"

"Do _you_ have any idea how hard it is for me to find a pair of pants that won't fall apart on me?!" Ron cried back hysterically.

"Thankfully no."

"Well...it's _really_ hard!"

"Please be talking about finding pants," Longbow grumbled as she completely turned away from the nearly naked boy.

"Hey!" he protested then looked over the side of the rafters down to Kim. "KP! Little help for the sidekick here?!"

At the sound of her name, Kim turned her head upwards and saw Ron precariously perched on the rafters as he tried to keep his boxers covered. Instinctually she pulled out her hair dryer grappling hook and fired the line towards the rafters. It stuck just above where Ron and Longbow stood and with the flick of a switch, she was quickly yanked off the ground.

"Oh sure, just leave _me_ here to fend for myself. I'll be _fine_," Shego called after her in a heavily sarcastic tone.

Kim turned her head back at the remark and it was just enough of a distraction for her to be caught off guard when White Knight sliced the grappling line with a well placed energy beam. She cried out as she started to fall to the hard floor below but two web lines shot out and clung to her back and pulled her down safely into Spyder's arms.

"Gotcha lass!" he exclaimed as caught her.

"Hey Bug Boy!" Shego called as she lit up her hands. "No touchie my Kimmie!"

"Ya want 'er? You can have 'er!" Spyder replied then quickly tossed Kim towards her.

Shego let out a surprised gasp before she extinguished her plasma flames and easily caught the red head in her arms. They flashed a quick smile at each other but before Shego could even think to put Kim down, Spyder started to web both of them up. They groaned as they struggled to break free of the sticky cocoon.

"Well here's another fine mess the sidekick has gotten us into," Shego remarked.

"Shego!" Kim admonished.

"What?! It's true! I mean I thought he was suppose to provide a distraction for the _other_ side."

"First of all this is the first time you two have ever actually worked together in a sitch like this, and secondly if you just let me concentrate I think...I can..."

Beneath the webbing, Kim struggled to get her right hand into one of the pouches on her belt. After a few seconds of slow wiggling, she was finally able to reach in and pull out the object she was looking for. Another round of struggled followed as she positioned it so it wouldn't herself or Shego.

"Alright, hold _really_ still," she instructed.

Shego was about to ask why she shouldn't move, but before she could a bright beam of light shot out from the side of the cocoon and sliced it up. Kim let out a struggled growled as she forced the rest of the webbing off of herself and dropped to the floor on her hands and knees. She stood up and replaced the cap on a small canister in her hand.

"Laser lipstick," she stated plainly.

"Fascinating," Shego droned as she rolled her eyes.

She then ignited her plasma powers again and burned the webbing from herself then looked at the other Justice Squad members, all of whom were looking at the two women cautiously as they continued to resume their fight. It was brought to a halt, however, by the unexpected sounds of light clapping behind them. Both teams turned to watch as Dr. Director and Will Du walked up to them from the shadows of the room.

"Alright, alright I think that's enough for now," the cyclopitic woman stated. "We all know that both teams could be at this all night."

"Yeah sure, end it when _your_ guys got the last shot in," Shego quipped with a snort as she folded her arms under her chest.

"I assure you that had nothing to do with it," Dr. Director replied.

"Uh huh," the pale green woman nodded which earned her a jab in the ribs from Kim.

"Be nice!" the redhead snapped quietly before she turned to the older woman. "We appreciate you letting use train here Dr. Director. I think it's helping both our teams."

"My thoughts exactly" the brunette agreed.

"Oh yeah, this helps as much as the nuns use when they'd beat me knuckles with a ruler," Spyder muttered as he rubbed his sore neck.

"They use to do that to you too?!" Shego asked in surprise.

"Most of my life," the masked man replied then tilted his head at her. "You product of the Catholic school system too?"

"Unfortunately."

"That's weird. Can't really imagine you as a Catholic school girl," Spyder remarked then placed his hand over chin. "Though givin' it some thought I can and I gotta say I like what I'm seein'."

Shego's eyes widened a bit in protest to his lecherous remarks just before they narrowed into slits and her hands lit up again. She pointed a flaming, claw tipped finger at him threateningly.

"Hey comic book reject. Not now. Not ever," she warned.

Spyder was about to offered a rebuttal when he received a fairly hard slap on the back of the head. He cried out and rubbed the sore spot before he turned around to see Longbow walking past his vision.

"Sorry about that," she apologized to Shego. "He doesn't really have a filter between his mouth and brain."

"Trust me I have a _lot_ of experience dealing with people like that," the raven haired woman replied.

Before the redheaded archer to respond another voice called out from across the room.

"Uh...heeeelloooo! Can someone get me a blanket? Or a towel? Or clothes? Or something?" Ron asked from his hiding place behind one of the pillars.

"Case in point," Shego muttered.

"Is he _always_ like this?" Longbow whispered from behind her right hand.

"Constantly."

"You have my pity."

While most of the other assembled heroes looked away out of respect for the blond boy, Catgirl kept her eyes glued to his barely covered form.

"Me-ow. Is this my birthday?" she asked with a wicked grin.

Unfortunately her free show was cut short when a large stony hand filled her vision.

"Hey!" she protested.

"Give the guy some privacy kid," Stonehenge remarked.

"Will, why don't you go get a towel for our guest?" Dr. Director asked the uptight agent.

"Wait, why should _I_-?" he started to protest.

"Because it's an order Will."

Knowing not the question that tone, Will just sighed and slumped off in search of a towel. While he did that, Kim walked over to Ron to not only block him from the others' view, but also to check on him.

"So other than the obvious, how are you doing?" Kim asked, her usual friendly smile on her face.

"Not so well," Ron replied, hiding behind the pillar even more.

"Oh come on, I thought you didn't get embarrassed?"

"I'm not embarrassed," he muttered lowering his head even more. "I'm ashamed."

That remark took Kim completely by surprise. Once she recovered from the shock, a reassuring smile crossed her lips as she laid a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Ron, you have nothing to be ashamed of. I'm sure you gave it your best shot," she said.

"But that's just it! I gave it _my_ best, which let's face it KP, has never been anywhere _near_ your level!" he protested.

"Okay, that's true but it's not like I looked down on you for that. And you've helped me plenty of times before. You've even _saved_ me a few times. And trust me, that means a lot to _me_," she smiled sweetly.

He gave her a weak smile in return.

"I guess so, but..." he paused as he looked over her shoulder to Shego who was still talking with Longbow. "With Shego around now you've got someone who can actually fight at your level with you. You've got a partner. And..."

"'And'...?" she pressed, not sure if she really wanted an answer.

"It...makes me realize that I'll never been anything _but_ 'the sidekick'."

It was at the moment that Will come back with a blanket. Ron took it from him wordlessly then wrapped it around his shoulders and walked off, his shoulder slouched and head hung low. Kim watched him walk off and felt like she should say something, _anything_, but for some reason words failed her. Which in turn made her feel like she failed her oldest and best friend. All she could really do at the moment was let out a low sigh as she held her hands up to her chest.

"Oh Ron..." she whispered worriedly.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Later in the evening, after a quick stop by Ron's house so he could get a new set of clothes, the trio returned to Kim and Shego's house where Kim had planned an enjoyable evening to hopefully lift Ron's spirits. Thankfully Bonnie was still home before she had to leave for the night shift as Smarty-Mart and that seemed to help him immensely. A few forced words of kindness from Shego helped as well. What really seemed to pick him up though was when Kim let him pick what they would watch for the night. Surprisingly that ended up being a "Boy Meets World" marathon on the Disney Channel. It was unexpected but still enjoyable for the rest of them.

Or at least it was enjoyable for Kim, Ron and Bonnie. Shego though was less than thrilled about it and made no secret of that fact. In fact she has spent most of the first few episodes complaining until Shin finally woke up and gave her something else to focus on. After she changed Shin's diaper and fed her a bit, she sat down on the floor with the pale green infant and started to gently toss a ball to her. She was surprised exactly how well Shin was able to catch it and toss it back. If she kept it up she could end up being some kind of sports star.

The prideful smile Shego had faded when she heard Ron laugh obnoxiously at some stupid thing on the show. She turned her attention to it for just a second before letting out an irritated groan.

"I still can't believe I'm spending a Friday night watching 'Boy Meets World'. Ugh, what's become of my life," she moaned.

"You fell in love and started a family," Kim quipped as she winked at Shego.

"Yeah and _this_ is making me rethink that whole thing," the raven haired woman shot back as she pointed to the TV.

"Oh come one Shego it's not that bad."

"Says you."

"It's not my first choice either, but at least it's entertaining," Bonnie spoke up from her place next to Ron. "And right now I'll take anything that lets me take my mind off the fact that I have to work night shift tonight."

Unfortunately that remark just reminded her that she did have to go to work all too soon. She buried her face in Ron's shoulder and let out a long, irritated groan at the mere thought of it.

"I don't want to go to work tonight," she whined as Ron gently rubbed her back. "Night shift is the worst. It's when all the _really_ big weirdos come to the store."

Shego's head snapped around to stare at Bonnie in astonishment of that statement.

"Wait you mean there are even _worse_ people that got to Smarty-Mart?!" she exclaimed.

Bonnie tilted her head from Ron's shoulder so she could glare at the pale green woman.

"You have _no_ idea," she warned.

"Well then I guess it's a good thing I usually try to avoid-"

Shego's comment was cut off when the bright red ball smacked her right in the side of the head. She turned her head back towards to Shin to find the toddler laughed and clapping her hands happily. As if that wasn't bad enough, she heard another familiar giggle behind her. She turned her head again to glare at Kim, who had her hand over her mouth in sad attempt to hide her laughter.

"Yuck it up there Possible," she snarled.

"Hey _you're_ the one who wanted to teach her how to toss a ball," Kim pointed out.

"Whatever. At least I didn't let Captain No Taste here pick an old sappy sitcom staring people who never went on to do anything else with their lives."

"Oh! _Again_ with the hate on the show! Why?! Why is everyone against it?!" Ron wailed.

"Because it's stupid!"

"It's a classic! It's got some great comedy, drama and characters. I particularly like that Eric guy. Except for his irrational liking of monkeys," he said in a low tone as he narrowed his eyes.

Shego rolled her eyes and let out an annoyed sigh.

"And _here_ we go with the monkeys again," she muttered.

"Oh trust me they're out there somewhere right now making their nefarious schemes..."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The Middleton History Museum is usually a fairly quiet place. Since most of the scientists in the town tended to look more towards the future they barely acknowledged the things from the past. In fact the museum was regarded as more of a novelty than anything else. Still it drew enough attention from the non scientifically inclined citizens and school children on field trips to warrant staying open. It created a nice, calm atmosphere that museums should have. It also meant that the more unsavory characters that had a tendency to visit Middleton usually over looked it as they felt there was little of value to them inside.

Or at least that was until tonight.

Tonight the peace and tranquility of the museum was broken by a group of shadowy figures repelling inside from the rooftop. They landed soundlessly on the tile floor and the tallest of them stood upright while the several, smaller figures scampered about the area in search of their master's treasure. As was usual in these kinds of situations in Middleton the small groups of thieves were actually quite unusual. While the tallest among them appeared mostly human the enlarged and hairy hands and hand style feet resembled those of a monkey. Though features only served to match those of his minions who _were_ in fact monkeys. They were all dressed in matching black gi with ninja masks covering their furry little heads. Their tails swung rapidly as they searched the immediate area.

"Yes, go my minions, search this place from top to bottom!" Monkey Fist cackled with evil glee. "Once I have the scroll to find the Yono's palace I will take it's power for my own and then _I_ shall finally become the one true Monkey Master!"

He punctuated his sentence with a maniacal laughter that almost sounded like a monkey's shrill shriek. He stopped just as quickly as he started then walked over to the museum's directory to study it.

"As soon as I find the blasted thing," he muttered irritably as he looked over the legend. "Now where would they keep an ancient, mystical scroll?"

As his eyes drifted over the icons and numbers, one of his ninja monkeys started to screech and hop up and down excitedly. His borrow furrowed at the distracting noise and he became even more annoyed when he saw where his supposedly faithful minion was pointing to eagerly.

"I told you Chippy, we're _not_ going by the gift shop," he chided.

Unbeknownst to Monkey Fist, the fight with his simian servant was being watched through the cameras by two guards stationed in the security office. They continued to stare at the unusual scene for a few seconds before they looked at each other.

"So...shouldn't we do something about this?" one of them asked.

"For $6.50 an hour?" the other scoffed. "Nah let's call someone who _knows_ how to deal with these freaks."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Kim let out an almost annoyed sigh when she heard the Kimmunicator's familiar four note tone. It's not that she was bothered with the idea of helping someone tonight, but after the rather rugged training session she was _really_ looking forward to a peaceful night at home. Unfortunately, duty called.

"What's the sitch Wade?" she asked in her usual cheerful manner.

"Break in at the Middleton History Museum. From the description the guards gave it sounds like Monkey Fist," Wade informed her.

"See?! I told you! Monkeys!" Ron shouted hysterically.

Shego let out an annoyed groan and shook her head as she stood up with Shin in her arms.

"Oh boy more monkey talk," she scoffed. "At least it'll be good exercise to get me back in the game."

"Uh Shego, aren't you forgetting about someone?" Kim asked, pointing to the toddler in her arms.

"Doy Princess, I'll get someone to watch her," Shego shot back, glazing over at Bonnie.

"Hey don't look at me, I told you I gotta go to work here soon," the brunette countered.

"I'll call my mom and see if she'll watch Shin for a while," Kim offered.

"Well if it helps, tell her it shouldn't be too difficult," she said, raising Shin's arm before letting it fall back down again. "Looks like she's out for the night."

The redhead nodded. "I'm sure that will help."

"It better. Because I'm gonna go get changed and get ready to kick some monkey butt!" Shego cheered as she walked off towards the bedrooms.

"Is it just me or is she a little _too_ excited for this?" Ron asked nervously.

"Well she _has_ been out of the field for a few months now. Can't blame her for being a bit excited can we?"

"Yeah but the last time she was in the field she was a _villain_. Remember?"

"I'm sure it'll be fine," Kim waved off then looked down at the Kimmunicator's screen again. "So Wade we got a ride yet?"

"Yep. Just set it up. Should be there soon," the young genius replied.

"As usual you rock in stereo Wade," Kim smiled.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

True to Wade's word, their ride arrived just as they had all changed into their mission outfits and gotten Shin set up with Kim's mother. The person giving them a ride was a little surprised at seeing three people instead of the usual two, but shrugged it off as expecting the unusual came with the territory when helping Kim Possible. They arrived at the museum shortly thereafter and after they talked to the guards on duty started the search for Monkey Fist. Unfortunately they were slowed down a bit by the fact that Shego kept stopping in front of every mirror or reflective surface to admire herself.

"Shego!" Kim chided in a hushed tone. "Can you _please_ do that later?!"

"Hey, it took me _weeks_ of intensive exercise to be able to fit back into this thing so I'm going to admire myself as much as I can," Shego shot back.

"But now is _not_ the time!"

The pale green woman let out a small groan as she walked back up to Kim and Ron.

"Fine, fine," she muttered. "But you gotta admit I look good in this."

Kim smiled softly before she leaned over and gave Shego a quick peck on the cheek.

"Of course you do," she reassured her before her "game face" appeared again. "But this is mission time now."

"Right, business and pleasure separate sure," Shego nodded then quickly turned to Ron and whispered. "She _always_ like this on missions?"

"Yep," he answered.

"Huh. Guess I never noticed from the other side."

"Shhh!" Kim ordered, placing a finger over her lips. "I think we found something."

Shego and Ron both looked at each other for a second then looked forward to where Kim's finger was pointing. In front of them were three archways leading to three separate hallways with the inscription above them reading:

"**DOORWAYS TO THE UNKNOWN**"

Shego scoffed as she placed her hands on her hips.

"'Doorways to the Unknown'?" she read aloud mockingly. "Seriously. And who sets up a museum like this?"

"They take a lot of this stuff _very_ seriously," Ron pointed out.

"_Too_ seriously apparently. And three doors? Doesn't that seem just a _little_ convenient?"

"What you never ran into any of this stuff when _you_ where a hero?" Kim retorted.

Shego looked like she was about to contradict her girlfriend but her expression quickly feel and her shoulder slumped a bit.

"Yeah, we did," she sighed in defeat.

Kim smiled at her small victory. "So then, which doors should we go through?"

"I say you take the left door, Ronnie boy here take the middle and I'll take the right," the pale green woman suggested.

"Any particular reason for that ordering?"

Shego shrugged. "Just seems right to me."

"Ron, you mind?" Kim asked, looking over at her friend.

"Hey, a tunnel's a tunnel right? What's the worse that could-hmph!"

The blond boy was stopped mid sentence by both women placing their hands over his mouth and glaring at him.

"What are you _totally_ stupid?!" Shego growled. "You _never_ say that in situations like this!"

"She's right Ron. Do you want any of us to get hurt on this mission?!" Kim declared.

Ron shook his head under their hands.

"So then the middle tunnel is alright with you?"

He nodded.

"Aright then," Kim sighed as she moved her hand. "They probably all lead back to a main room anyway so I'm sure we'll all meet back up again soon."

A fist suddenly struck out and hit her shoulder.

"Ow!" she cried out and glared at Shego. "What was _that_?!"

"For you being almost stupid as the sidekick here," she explained, jerking a thumb to Ron. "That's another one of those phrases you don't say."

"Whatever. Let's just get on with this, okay?" Kim grumbled.

The other two nodded before they all split up and went down the separate tunnels, tense and waiting for anything at all to jump out at them.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

As Shego made her way through the "Tunnel of the Unknown", she glanced around her and saw that most of the items behind glass of the display cases were of Native American origin and mostly sticking to the mystical side of things. Shaman headdresses, dreamcacthers, and plenty of stuff dedicated to "The Great Bear Spirit" whatever _that_ was. Personally she considered it all a bunch of mombo jumbo that really wasn't worth her time.

Course then again she never expected fighting someone named "Monkey Fist" to be worth her time either. She couldn't believe this was her triumphant return to the field. Or even her return to being a hero. She was hoping it'd be something big and noteworthy and something that'd really help her put her skills to the test.

"So much for that," she muttered.

Though there was still a _small_ chance this mission could be interesting. She'd never actually met Monkey Fist before but she knew he was suppose to be a master of Tai Shing Pek Kwar. Course it was normally called "Monkey Kung Fu" and the guy used "monkey ninjas" and that just sounded so...stupid.

_Seriously, how much trouble could monkeys be anyway?_ She thought divisively with a shake of her head.

As she continued to walk down the hallway, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched. Her body tensed more and more as the feeling grew stronger and her eye shot from side to side. Being that she had been cooped up in the house for quite awhile it _was_ possible that she was just being paranoid.

"Yeah because _that's_ how it works," she remarked as she balled her hands up into fists.

She quickly spun around to check area behind her but saw nothing. She then thought she heard something behind her so she turned back around, but still saw nothing. This pattern continued for a few minutes, every time she heard a skittering or chittering sound she'd turn to it and see nothing. Now she _knew_ someone was playing with her and it was wearing down her already thin patience.

"Alright, whoever you are, just came out here and fight me like a man!" she challenged.

Instantly five figures jumped out from the shadows and covered Shego. She let out a surprised and annoyed scream as she pried the small figures off her, tossing them against the walls and down the hallway. Once she recovered from the initial attack she saw them for what they were: monkeys dressed in ninja garb.

"Oh you gotta be kidding me," she muttered.

The monkeys looked indignant to the dismissive comment then hopped up to their feet and took defensive stands.

"What, seriously?" Shego asked in disbelief.

The head monkey nodded, his eyes narrowing dangerously. Shego sighed and took a half hearted stance of her own.

"Well look what I gotta go now," she grumbled just before the monkeys launched themselves at her again.

Shego just let out another annoyed sigh as the battle begun.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Down the middle tunnel, Ron found himself surrounded by scrolls and artifacts of Japanese origin. There was armor and weapons of all sorts of variety, most of it focusing on the mystical aspects of the culture. It was all little freaky for him and kinda reminded him of Yamanouchi which in turn reminded him that he should really try to get a hold of Yori at some point and see how she's doing. That train of thought was derailed when he noticed something glistening in one of the display cases. He walked over to it noticed the small purple jewel sitting atop a red velvet cushion with a small name card sitting in front of it.

"'Jewel of Four Souls'," he read aloud then turned to Rufus who was sitting on his shoulder. "Huh. Must be pretty crowded in there."

"Uh huh. Uh huh. Crowded," Rufus chittered in agreement.

His admiration of the jewel was broken when he heard soft footsteps approaching him. Letting out a terrified shriek he quickly turned to find a single monkey ninja approaching him. He took a step back and readied himself for an attack but none came. He stared at the diminutive ninja for a moment and felt something almost...familiar about it.

"Wait...Chippy?!" he asked in surprise.

The monkey ninja let out a small "ook" as it nodded vigorously.

"Hey buddy, long time no see! So what's up with-?" Ron started to asked, taking a step forward.

Chippy stopped him with an outstretch hand. He then crossed his arms over his shoulder and shook his head while grunting something incoherent to most. But to Ron it was a clear as day.

"What? Oh come on, you can't blame me for that! _You're_ the one who went back to Monkey Fist!"

The irrate monkey screeched loudly and jumped up and down a bit.

"Don't give me that. You went back to Monkey Fist to be the evil monkey lackey and now look where we are. I got over my fear of monkey's because of you!" he shouted dramatically.

"Huh?" Rufus squeaked, looking at him in confusion.

"Okay fine, _mostly_ got over it. But still the point is, you ran out on me."

Chippy growled and motioned to someone over his shoulder. Two more monkey ninjas stepped out of the shadows, ready to back up their comrade at moment's notice. Ron's jaw dropped in disbelief of the action and what he knew was going to happen next.

"We really gotta do this?" he asked in a disappointed manner.

Chippy just nodded slowly.

"Fine. Can I at least have a head start?"

The monkey's went into a huddle and started making whispered grunts and hoots, one looking up at Ron to study him for a second before ducking his head back down into the group. After a few seconds they broke the huddle and Chippy looked up at Ron for the last time and nodded slowly.

"Thanks man," Ron nodded back.

He then tore down the hallway as fast as he could, screaming at the top of his lungs with the highly trained monkeys right behind him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Monkey Fist cackled gleefully as he walked away from the museum's display to Mystical Monkey Power. It was pitifully furnished and almost painfully inaccurate in some places but it had the one thing he needed. The scroll to find the palace of the Yono. Soon it's power would be in his grasp and then _he_ would become the Supreme Monkey Master! He was about to let out his trademark laughing/hooting sound but any joy he had was completely lost when he saw a familiar red headed figure walk around the corner.

"Kim Possible?!" he shouted in outrage.

"Well look who I found," Kim remarked, going into a defensive stance. "I don't suppose you'd be willing to just put that scroll back and come along to jail with me, would you?"

An angry scowl crossed the moneky man's face as he tightened his grip on the scroll and held it as far away from her as he could.

"Never," he spat raising his other hand in a combative gesture.

"That's what I thought," the redhead remarked.

With that she leapt forward and tried to snatch the scroll away from him. Monkey Fist deftly spun around to avoid her attack then brought up a hand shaped foot and hit her across the back as she passed, knocking her to the floor. She jumped back up to her feet and tried to bring him down with a flying kick, but he deflected this as well by grabbing her foot and throwing her to the other side of the room. She bounced off her hand to flip herself up and land gracefully on her feet.

"Alright, different tactic," she muttered then charged him again.

This time she stopped just in front of him and started to unleash a flurry of punches and kick on her opponent. Monkey Fist defended her attacks as best he could while still holding onto the scroll. He would occasionally have to toss it to his other hands so he could properly defend or attack as well as keep it away from her. In one instance he balanced on his left foot so he could hold it in his right hand foot as he attacked with both his fists. He let out an annoyed growl as sweat began to form over his elongated brow. He would have finished her off quite a bit ago if he didn't have to worry about the scroll.

_Where _are_ those blasted monkeys?!_ He thought in annoyance.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Back in the right tunnel Shego had her own hands full with the monkey ninjas. They were a lot more tenacious than she gave them credit for and the did have the numbers advantage on her. Still they were just monkeys and she had the height and strength advantage on them. She tossed one off her shoulder, then grabbed the tail of another one that was around her waist and swung it around to hit another one that was trying to jump at her. She then kicked away one that was standing in front of her. She breathed heavily and watched them carefully as they started to pick themselves up again.

"Alright, enough of this!" she growled as she ignited her plasma powers. "Fire in the hole!"

The assembled monkey ninjas shrunk back at the sight of the black and green flames surrounding the woman's hands. Not to mention the near psychotic look on her face. The stared at each other for a second before taking off in the other direction as fast as their hands and feet could carry them.

"Yeah you _better_ run!" Shego called out after them.

She then let out soft sigh as she extinguished her flames and relaxed a bit.

"I can't believe it took me that long to deal with a pack of _monkeys_," she muttered in self disgust. "I _am_ out of practice."

She shrugged it off then continued on her way down the rest of the tunnel. Soon enough it led into a large circular room with a few more doorways leading to other areas of the museum. What really caught her attention though were the two people fighting each other in the middle of the room. Kim was doing her best to fight off Monkey Fist and apparently get some kind of scroll from him but he was more than holding his own against her. Her hands balled up into fists again as she started charging towards him.

"Kimmie!" she called out.

Kim blocked one of the Monkey Fists' fists then turned her head to the person calling out her name.

"Shego! Get the scroll!" she ordered.

It took a second for Shego to get use to Kim giving her an order during a mission but she quickly recovered and nodded, then started to go for the scroll. Unfortunately her charge was interrupted by a high pitched squealing sound. All three combatants stopped for a moment to watch Ron come running into the room, arms waving frantically and three monkey ninjas pawing at him.

"Get 'em off! Get 'em off!" he shouted in desperation.

"Scratch that, help Ron first," Kim sighed.

The pale green woman just shook her head in annoyance then leapt over the two fighters to assist the blond boy. She grabbed one of the ninja's by the back of it's gi and tossed it across the room. She then ignited her hands again and blasted away the other two, causing them to fall to the floor in unconscious heaps. Ron hunched over and breathed heavily for a second before he looked up at Shego.

"Thanks," he said.

"Don't mention it," Shego replied. "Ever. Now if you'll excuse me..."

She then ran forward and tackled Monkey Fist off of Kim which finally caused him to loose his grip on the scroll. It went sailing through the air and landed perfectly in Ron's hand. He stared at it for a second in confusion before his eyes turned to Kim.

"Uh..." he started to say.

"It's what Monkey Fist is trying to steal. Can you put it back in the exhibit it belongs to?" Kim asked him sweetly.

"Sure thing KP!" Ron nodded diligently.

He then looked around for where he thought it should go until he found a sign above one of the doorways that read:

"**SECRETS OF MYSTICAL MONKEY POWER**"

"I'm guessing that's probably it," he muttered to Rufus.

"Oh yeah," Rufus nodded.

"Stay here and see if you can help Kim and Shego, I'll go put his thing back."

"Gotcha!" the mole rat squeaked with a thumbs up before jumping off his master's shoulder.

As Ron walked down the hallway to the Mystical Monkey Power exhibit, Kim turned her attention back to the fight between Shego and Monkey Fist. Much like herself, Shego seemed to be having a difficult time breaking through the monkey man's defensives. Of course, _unlike_ her, Shego also have a rather handy trick up her sleeve. After a few more exchanges of fists and feet, she finally got upset and ignited her plasma powers once more fired a quick blast right into Monkey Fist's stomach. He let out a howl of pain as he flew through the air and landed right at Kim's feet. The red smiled then knelt down so she could hold his hands down to the floor.

"So, ready to give up now?" she asked with a smug smile.

The enraged half-man/half-monkey breathed heavily for a few seconds as he snarled up at his captor. Much to Kim's surprise, however, it was soon replaced with a rather smarmy smile of his own. A dangerous glint came to his eye as he stared up at her.

"Oh no," he whispered smoothly. "You see I anticipated the arrival of you and your little sidekick my dear. Granted I hadn't planned on Shego to be here as well, and I'm more than a little miffed about _that_," he snarled, glaring at the pale green woman.

"Well get use to it cause this is how it's gonna be from now on," Shego remarked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"In any case, I assumed you and the imposter would try to stop me and most likely put the scroll back," Monkey Fist continued. "And given his penchant for taking that which is rightfully _mine_, I decided not to take _any_ chances this time."

A horrified look crossed Kim's face at the thinly veiled threat and the dangerous looked coming to Monkey Fist's face.

"What did you do?!" she screamed, slamming him against the ground.

"Just made sure that if _I_ can't have the power of the Yono then _he_ won't either!" he shouted crazily as his right hand foot reached up into his pant leg and pulled something out.

"Kimmie look out!" Shego warned her as she ran forward to try to get what looked like a detonator.

Unfortunately neither Kim nor Shego could react fast enough for the thumb on his foot to pressed the red button on top of the cylinder like device.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ron hummed a bit as he walked down the small hallway to the Mystical Monkey Power exhibit. He fought off a shudder as he looked around at all the displays dedicated to the strange power that supposedly he had flowing through him. He really didn't know how it worked other than it came and went from time to time. Kim had suggested the he try to harness it but he just wasn't ready to embrace the monkey side yet. It was just too...creepy.

He looked around and quickly spotted the glass display case with a small hole cut out in front of it and an empty pillow sitting inside. He nodded then walked over to it and carefully slid the scroll back into place. He studied the damaged case for a second, trying to decide if he should try to fix it.

"Eh I'm sure they got people for that," he remarked.

He was about to leave when a soft beeping sound from behind the display stand caught his attention. He peered around it to find a small metal box attack to the bottom of the pedestal with a flashing red light on top. It suddenly beeped very quickly before turning a solid color. Ron's eyes widened in horror when he realized what it was and what the red light meant. The world seemed to move in slow motion as Ron brought his hands up to feebly protect his face. Oddly enough a warm, calming sensation came over him as his hole body began to light up with a soft blue glow. Normally he would have been scared of that or at least question what it was, but he had more pressing matters at the moment. Not to mention he was out of time.

A thunderous explosion filled his ears as blinding white light filled his vision. The warm feeling around him only increased as his body was flung helplessly across the room. He barely felt it though as an inky blackness started overwhelm him, shutting out the rest of the world. Before he was completely lost he thought on last thing:

_Kim, I'm sorry._

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"ROOOOOON!!" Kim screamed out in terror as she tore down the hallway.

Caught up in the heat of the moment, and concern filling her own thoughts, Shego ran after the redhead, both completely forgetting about Monkey Fist. They ran as fast as they could down the dimly light hallway, utter fear encompassing their thoughts. Naturally Kim was much more concerned then Shego, but the pale green woman was still concerned. She didn't like the thought of _anyone_ she knew dying, no matter how annoying they were. She glanced over to her and saw the worry completely covering Kim's face and she felt sorry for not knowing how to comfort her.

Kim's mind raced with all the horrible thoughts of what could have happened to Ron. The explosion they heard didn't sound too large but depending on how close he was he could be seriously injured. Even...

_NO! _her mind shouted. _That didn't happen! It _couldn't_ have happened! No one's suppose to get seriously hurt on our missions! It just doesn't happen! He'll be alright. He _has_ to be alright!_

After running for what seemed like an eternity the two finally reached the other end of the hallway and saw the smokey remains of the exhibit. Kim's eyes immediately zoomed in on the prone body laying on the face down on the floor. Her heart sunk when she saw the tattered remains of his clothes, the cuts covering his body and the unnatural position his limbs were laying in. Tears stinging her eyes she ran over to then knelt down, grabbed his shoulder and gently turned him off to get a bitter look at him, being careful to not hurt him any more. Her eyes widened and she let out a horrified gasp at the sight before her.

"Oh Ron," she whispered turning away into Shego's waiting arms. "No..."

**To Be Continued....**

**Author's Notes:** Yes, it's a _horrible_ cliffhanger but interestingly enough not where I originally intended to end this chapter. I just noticed it was starting to run a bit long so I decided to end it earlier than I thought and thankfully that scene worked out quite well as a chapter cut. Now you'll all just have to wait and see what happened to poor Ron. Muwahahahahahahahaha!! "Oh I'm a naughty boy! Naughty! Naughty! Naughty! Nau..."

Ahem. Anyway, here we go the first chapter to the highly anticipated "Sidekick, No More". One of the "major event" stories in the MI series. It probably won't be a huge as "Maternal Instinct" ended up being but it _will_ one of those stories that has a profound impact on the series. Most notably Ron. I mean...obviously just look where this chapter ended. You're probably all wondering where the story's going to go from here right? Well for that you'll just have to wait for the following chapters. I hope it's a journey you'll be willing to take with me and won't be too pissed once it's all over. I really have a feeling people are either gonna like what I'm gonna do to Ron or _really_ hate it. Guess we'll find out which one it'll be soon enough.

Take care til next time!


	2. Recovery

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kim Possible. She is owned by Disney and Mark McCorkle and Bob Schooley. Any original characters shown or mentioned belong to me and can not be used without permission. Got it?_

**Sidekick, No More**

**Chapter 2: Recovery **

The last few hours had been particularly nerve wrecking for Kim. After she had recovered from the shock of seeing Ron's body, she quickly had Wade call up the hospital and send in an ambulance as quickly as they could. When it arrived, Kim and Shego helped the EMTs place Ron in the back of the vehicle, completely overlooking the fact that Monkey Fist and his minions had escaped. It barely crossed Kim's mind though as she was totally focused on keeping Ron alive. Or rather praying that he would be alive. It was a feeling that only increased when they got to the hospital and had to be separated from him. Of course praying wasn't her only option. Once she was finally able to think clearly she had Wade call in the best plastic surgeons in the country to help with the surgery. A favor from Global Justice ensure they were on the next super sonic jet to the hospital and made it there in no time flat. It was just one of the _many_ favors she had to call in that night.

Even after the surgery, Kim was not allowed to see Ron until after all the doctors were done examining him. At the moment the two plastic surgeons she brought in where in Ron's room and looking him over as Kim paced outside in the waiting room, chewing nervously on the tip of her thumb as Shego tried to comfort her. At about her fifth lap around the row of plastic chairs, Bonnie came running up to them, still wearing the white shirt, black pants and orange vest that made up her Smarty-Mart outfit, complete with name tag. She stopped in front of them and took a moment to catch her breath before she glared up at Kim.

"Where is he?!" she demanded frantically.

"Well look how finally made it," Shego retorted, a bit defensive at the brunette's tone towards her nearly traumatized girlfriend.

Bonnie turned her angered glare towards the older woman.

"_Don't_ start with me!" she snapped, jabbing a finger in Shego's face. "I _tried_ go leave work the second you called me but my stupid boss told me that only could for immediate family members! So I had to stay and finish the rest of my stupid shift as a nervous wreck!"

"So why didn't you just leave?"

"Because _some_ of us actually _need_ to have a job because we don't have tons of money saved up from the time as a super villain!"

"That sounds like a personal problem to me," Shego retorted.

Bonnie glared angrily at her for a second as her hands balled up into fists and her frustration continued to grow. She was about to tear the pale woman a new one but instead her head snapped over towards Kim again. Her eyes narrowed dangerously as she stalked forward and grabbed Kim by the collar to her mission shirt.

"How could you let this happen?!" the brunette screamed, pulling the redhead's face close to her. "I thought you were the _great_ Kim Possible! You could do anything! Except apparently, take care of your supposed best friend!"

Kim's shame filled eyes turned away from Bonnie's accusing ones. On any other occasion, the redhead would have given back just as good as she got and it would probably end up being another back and fourth between the two of them. Just like the old days in cheerleading practice. But those days were gone now and she had to deal with the fact that _nothing_ would ever be that simple again.

And it was all her fault.

She scrunched her eyes shut to try to clear the tears out of them. She then tilted her head in the direction of corner room Ron was currently in. Bonnie stared longingly at the door for a moment before the angry glare came back into her eyes and she snapped her head back towards Kim again, tears starting to well up in the corners of her own eyes.

"You're suppose to keep him safe!" she screamed. "You said none ever really gets hurt on these stupid missions of yours! What happened to _that_ Kim?!"

"Hey back off!" Shego snapped, pulling Kim away from the brunette. "She's in no condition to handle your bitching!"

Unfortunately, the outburst just caused the outraged brunette to turn her attention to the older woman.

"You were there too, why weren't _you_ trying to help him?!" she accused, poking Shego in the chest roughly with her right index finger.

"Because _I_ was helping Kim deal with Monkey Fist," Shego snapped back. "How the hell were _we_ suppose to know he planted a bomb?! He never did anything like that before!"

"Well aren't you heroes _supposed_ to be the look out for that kind of stuff?!"

"Not when we're _not_ expecting it! That's why it's called 'a surprise'!"

"Well that 'surprise' nearly killed the guy I love!"

"And it could have killed either of us too, but you don't seem to broken up about that!"

"Hey! _Hey_!" a new voice called out angrily.

All three women turned their attention to the source of the voice to see Dr. Cox marching over to them, an even deeper scowl on his face than usual. He stopped right in front of them and crossed his arms over his chest as he glared at each one of them.

"This is a _hospital_!" he growled. "There are people who are sick and/or dying here and it would be nice if they could do that _in peace_! Now if you two want to go at it so badly I'm sure The Janitor could set up a kiddie pool of lime Jell-O out in the parking lot and you to could just wrestle around in it to your hearts' content but while you're in this hospital, _my_ hospital, you're going to be _quiet_! Are we clear?!"

"Hey, Dr. Lippy, _so_ not in the mood to listen to one of your smartass rants," Shego countered.

"Oh does She-Hulk want to go, cause we'll go," Dr. Cox challenged as he started to wave his fists around like a 1920s style boxer.

Before the scene could degenerate any further, the two doctors who were examining Ron finally stepped out of his room. Unlike the other doctors in the hospital they were dressed in rather expensive looking, well tailored suits. The taller of the pair has short, black hair and kept checking out every female nurse, doctor, and patient that crossed his path. He looked more like he was in a club looking to score a one night stand rather than a doctor who had just checked up on a patient.

The shorter one had short brown hair and seemed much more professional. He also had the look of a man who had taken a serious beating from life but tried not to let it get to him. He was looking over Ron's chart as they walked over to where the quartet stood waiting to hear whatever news they had to share. Or at least the three women were. Dr. Cox looked even more annoyed than before as he focused his ever present evil eye on the other two doctors.

"Weeeellll if it isn't my _least_ favorite versions of surgeons ever: the plastic surgeons. And if that isn't bad enough one of them has to be the biggest horn dog since Caligula," he remarked, staring intently at the taller one.

"Nice to see you again too Perry," the other doctor remarked.

"You two know each other?" Shego asked, noticing the underlying tension between them.

"We've met," Dr. Cox said curtly.

"More like encountered each other," the darker haired doctor quipped. "Sean you remember I mentioned Perry. He's the guy who wouldn't go any further in his career because he's such an intolerable ass none of his bosses can stand him."

"True dat," Dr. Kelso muttered as he walked by the group.

Dr. Cox gave him an odd look for a second then turned his attention back to the other two.

"Yes we _have_ met before," he said, answering Shego's question. "Allow me to introduce Dr. Christian Troy, one of the best plastic surgeons in the country. Of course that's like saying E. Coli is one of the best deceases in the country."

"Charming," Christian countered. "So Perry, how's that hot wife of yours?"

"Still as shrewish and hate filled as ever. I'd ask how are all your various girlfriends are but I'm sure at this point they're all rotten from the inside by all the various STDs you're crawling around inside you."

"I'll have you know I get myself checked regularly and I have a clean bill of health."

"Well obviously that doctor's as much of a quack as you are."

"Excuse me," Sean interrupted, stepping forward. "Now I don't mind you calling out Christian on his sexual indiscretions, hell I've said worse myself, but I will _not_ have you undercutting either of our abilities as doctors."

"'Undercutting'. Well _that's _an interesting word for you to use," Dr. Cox said in a mocking tone. "Of course that's not surprising considering you scalpel jockeys _only_ know how to speak in terms of knives and cutting and anything else that doesn't require higher level thought processes."

"What is your problem with us, anyway?"

The cynical doctor's eyes suddenly lit up like that of a kid's on Christmas morning. A sideways smirk crosses his face as he took a deep breath before even trying to answer the question.

"Oh I am just so glad you asked the question," he beamed. "You see my problem with you is the same problem I have with all the surgeons here. And you meant want to lean in close cause it's a bit of a secret." He then leaned forward and placed a hand over one side of his mouth for dramatic effect. "The thing is, you're not really doctors. None of the surgeons I've _ever_ met have been real doctors, they're just walking scalpels and other pointy things that like to just go around cutting whatever gets in their way.

"Buuuut to be fair the surgeons here actually do serve _somewhat_ of a purpose as sometimes us real doctors _do_ need to push our patients into the operating room to get something cut out. Of course half the time we don't expect to get them back because surgeon's brains are just too tiny they can't seem to comprehend the complexities of the human body. Nevertheless it's a chance that needs to be taken.

"_You two_, however, perform completely unnecessary surgeries by preying on people's fears of the imperfections in their bodies, most of which are _not_ that big a deal."

"And what about the things that _are_ a big deal?" Sean countered. "Tumors that need to be removed?

Tendons that have to be repaired? Any number of reconstructive surgery?"

"Then I would recommend that they go to a _real_ hospital where _real_ surgeons can kill them. At least that way they have a better chance. Not a big one mind you, but still a better one."

"So...so how is Ron, Dr. McNamara?" Kim spoke up, abruptly ending the fight between the two doctors.

Sean regarded Kim with a sorrowful expression. He hated giving bad news to grieving family or friends. It was the absolute worst part of being a doctor. While the news he had to give wasn't _completely_ bad he could also tell the by redhead's face that it wasn't going to be the news she wanted to hear. He cast his eyes down to the clipboard in his heads as he tried to think of the best way to tell her her friend's fate.

"Well as I'm sure you're aware he had multiple scars and a few minor burns all over his body. Particularly on his face. To be honest it's a miracle he's even alive at all," he started optimistically.

"That's what everyone keeps telling me," Kim muttered a bit bitterly.

"So what does that mean?! Is he going to be alright?!" Bonnie cried out desperately.

"Overall he's going to be fine, and we'll try to fix as many of his scars and burns as we can but..." he paused to let out a deep sigh. "Some of them _are_ going to be permanent. The tissue is just too deeply damaged for us to get rid of them completely. I'm sorry."

"Got any other 'good' news there doc?" Shego scoffed.

"He's never going to be able to talk again. I'm sorry but his vocal cords and voice box were just too badly damaged."

Kim's eyes screwed shut again as she turned and buried her head in Shego's shoulder. Shego brought her hand up and gently held Kim's head as she whispered into her ear to try to comfort her. Bonnie stared wide eyed in shock for a moment before she stumbled back into one of the plastic chairs and buried her face in her hands as tears started to flow freely. The assembled doctors looked at the three grieving women with the same mix of frustration and sorrow they usually felt when they couldn't help a patient. Dr. Cox decided to take his frustration out on the two plastic surgeons who irritated him so.

"Alright you two butchers are done. Why don't you just get the hell out of here?!" he snarled.

"You know what? Fine. But we _will_ be back here tomorrow morning to start treatment on our patient," Sean snapped back then took a card from his coat pocket and handed it to Shego. "If you have any questions please feel free to call us."

As she took the card from him, Christian walked in between them and threw an arm over his friend's shoulder.

"Come on Sean, if they don't want us around I'm sure we can find some way to pass the time. There's going to be some clubs we can scope out in this little town," he said in slightly arrogant tone.

Dr. Cox continued to glare at the two until they rounded the corner and disappeared from sight. He then turned his attention to the three women still in front of him and quickly thumbed his nose as he crossed his arms again.

"Alright now you three," he started in his usual stern and annoyed voice. "You can either stand out here and continue to bicker amongst yourself in which case I'd get that giant security guard with the fro and hook hand to forcibly remove you from the building. Or you could stay here and cry all over the floor which would probably cause it to become so slick The Janitor would have to come by and mop up and trust me you reeeee-eeeeeee-aaaallydo _not_ want to get on his bad side and yes I do speak from personal experience. Or, and this is a crazy idea, you could pull yourselves together, get your asses in there and give that boy the one thing he needs now more than ever: friends. Someone he knows who cares about and can give him the strength he needs to pull through this." He paused to title his head a bit. "So, what's it going to be?"

Immediately, Shego and Bonnie's eyes turned to Kim. They all knew that she should rightfully be the first to go into Ron's room. Even if Bonnie wanted nothing more than to run into that room right now and try to hug and kiss his wounds away. But she would have to wait her turn. No matter how much it pained her.

For her part, Kim desperately wanted to go into that room. She _wanted_ to go see how Ron was doing and try to cheer him up. She wanted to do that more than life itself. But she couldn't. She just _couldn't_. She knew Shego and Bonnie were expecting her to go first because of the bond she and Ron shared. A bond that had formed in Pre-K and lasted throughout their whole school career. It even survived their short and rather awkward relationship. But it was this very bond that was holding her back. She was supposed to the responsible one of the duo. She was supposed to look out for him. She was supposed to keep him safe.

And she failed. She failed on _so_ many levels. The thought of going into that room and seeing him laying there hurt and suffering because of _her_ was just too much.

"I...I can't!" she cried out before she spun around and ran down the hallway, tears flowing freely from her eyes.

"Kim! Kim wait!" Shego called out, running after her without a second thought.

Dr. Cox watched them both run off with a disappointed scowl on his face.

"And they're out," he muttered.

He then focused his eyes on the remaining brunette.

"You! Get in there!" he commanded, nodding his head towards the door then adding with a whistle, "Go on! Get!"

Bonnie stared at him blankly for a moment. At first her natural resentment of being told what to do kicked in, but it was quickly buried under the mountain of exhaustion she was feeling as well as her need to go into the room and check on her boyfriend. So she clenched her jaw and nodded then made her way over to where Ron lay silently. As Dr. Cox turned to watch her walk into the room, he felt a very familiar and very annoying presence suddenly slide up next to him.

"See, it's that kind of care for your patients that makes you my hero and inspiration," JD said tenderly as he placed a hand on Dr. Cox's shoulder.

"Newbie take your hand off me or I swear by all that is holy you will be doing your rounds with a bloody stump," he warned.

JD quickly did as he was told and took an extra step back as a precaution.

"There ya go," Dr. Cox muttered with a nod.

Bonnie was oblivious to the rather odd scene taking place in the hallway as all her attention was focused on the mostly still body laying in the bed in front of her. If it wasn't for the gentle rise and fall of his chest and the rhythmic beating of the heart monitor she could swear that Ron wasn't alive at all. But thank God he was. She didn't think she could handle losing him. Not after everything else she lost. She couldn't lose the one good thing she had in her life right now.

She took a few careful steps over to the bed and rested her hands on the guardrails surrounding it. Her eyes filled with tears as she looked down at his bandaged head. She just couldn't imagine that his boyish, freckled covered face was gone now. Well obviously it wasn't _completely_ gone but from what those two plastic surgeons had said he'd never look the same again. It was just so...unbelievable. To not see that goofy grin on his face again. To hear his infectious laugh when he found something really funny. Things that _she_ didn't find particularly funny but she couldn't help but laugh when she heard him in the throws of a good belly laugh. It made her regret that she has put him down and ignored him all those years in high school.

And now all that was gone. He wouldn't be able to laugh again, let alone even _talk_. She let out a long, heavy sigh as she sat down in the chair next to the bed then snaked her arm through the railing to gently cup his hand with her own. She gave it a soft squeeze as a tear slowly slid down her cheek. She knew that Kim blamed herself for what happened to him, and even she had blamed the redhead at first, but she knew who was _really_ to blame...

"It's all my fault," Bonnie sobbed. "It's my bad karma! I was starting to get too happy and for some reason _you_ were punished for it. I'm sorry Ron, I'm so sorry. If I had known I never would have asked you out. I never would have stayed with you!"

She covered her eyes with her free hand as she wept openly. Normally she wouldn't allow herself to be seen like this. To look weak. It was why she was so stubborn in asking for Kim's help. She was supposed to be a strong, independent woman you didn't really need anyone. But now she did. She _needed_ Ron and the thought of him being so badly hurt was just too much for her. She shoulders trembled as she continued to cry for a minute or so. She really wasn't sure how long she cried but it felt like forever to her. Eventually though she was able to regain control of her emotions and fought the tears back. She rubbed her now bloodshot eyes and focused her blurry version on Ron's still form.

"I shouldn't have stayed with you," she repeated softly as she tightened her grip on his hand a bit. "But now that I _have_ stayed, I never want to leave you. And-and I won't. I promise you that. No matter what'll happen or what you'll look like I'll be there for you, you hear that? You did so much for me over the last few months and now it's my turn to repay you. I just...I just want you to get better. Just _please_ get better, okay?"

She let out another sigh and dipped her head a bit in sadness. It snapped back up again when she felt him squeeze her hand back a bit. Her eyes widened with hope but fell again slightly when she saw he was still asleep. Still, it was a sign that he was not only alive but had heard her somehow. That was good enough for her for now. She smiled softly and returned the squeeze, hoping that he would get her message.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Shego wandered around the hospital's hallways in her search for Kim. She had planned to just follow the sounds of crying but it seemed there were far more of those in hospitals than she ever would have expected. This of course made it rather difficult for her to track down her own grieving girlfriend. She eventually did stumble upon her in a row of three plastic chairs down an mostly empty hallway. She had her head buried in the crock of her elbow and her body was trembling slightly. Shego inhaled deeply before she carefully walked over to Kim, trying not to startle her. She sat down in the chair next to her and laid a soft, comforting hand on her shoulder to let her know she was there. Kim immediately took the unspoken offer and once again buried her head in the older woman's shoulder. Shego wrapped her arms around the redhead and gently padded her back and head.

"It'll.-it'll be okay Kimmie," she said, trying to sooth Kim as best as she could.

"How?! _How_ will it be okay?!" she wailed, looking up at Shego with wet, reddened eyes. "Ron's laying there in a disfigured mess and it's all my fault!"

"No it's _not_!" Shego insisted. "If you want to play the blame game then lay it on the person it really belongs to: Monkey Fist. He's the one who tried to steal that stupid scroll thing and _he's_ the one that set that bomb. So it's all _his_ fault."

"But _I_ was the one who forced him to go!" Kim spat out through her sobs. "He wouldn't even have been there if it wasn't for me!"

"Oh that's just crap!" the older woman challenged.

She then tucked her fingers under the redhead's chin and held her head up to force her to look her in the eyes.

"Now you listen to me, Kim Possible," she started forcefully. "I know I've made a lot of snide remarks of Ron not being the brightest bulb but even _I_ know he's not _that_ stupid!" She sighed then her expression and tone softened. "Look, Ron's not some completely blindly loyal puppy. He didn't go on that mission or _any_ mission just because you told him too. Yeah that was probably part of it, but the real reason he's out there with you is because like you, he knows it's the right thing to do. You're _both_ so irritably goodie-goodie it drives me nuts sometimes!"

The right corner of her lip curled back a bit in a smirk as her thumb gently rubbed Kim's chin.

"But that's exactly what I love about you and what I can...tolerate about him," she confessed. "You're heroes. More so then me even in my Team Go days. And every hero knows the risks of going out there and doing the right thing. You put your life on the line every time. You know, I know it, and Ron knew it. He still took that chance though because it was the right thing to do. He _wanted_ to do it. Trust me even dogs are only so loyal. Yeah it's horrible this had to happen but it was just a freak accident. There was nothing either of us could have done about it, so _stop_ blaming yourself or I'm gonna go back to kicking your ass, got it?"

A very small smile tugged at the edges of Kim's mouth for a second but it quickly faded. Still it was enough encouragement for Shego to crack a smile of her own. She leaned forward to give Kim a quick, hopefully uplifting, kiss on the lips.

"Now as much as I _hate_ to agree with that jackass Dr. Cox, he's right, we really _should_ be in there to support Ron," she said.

Any comfort Kim felt before quickly evaporated at the thought of having to step into that room. Even after Shego's pep talk she couldn't quite get over the feelings of guilt and shame when thinking about the injured Ron. She shook her head violently and buried her face in Shego's shoulder once more.

"I...I can't," she blubbered. "Not just yet. I just can't go in there yet."

"It's okay Kimmie," Shego soothed her. "You don't have to go in there right _n ow_ but you will eventually. For now...how about we just go home and get some sleep? Maybe...maybe that'll help you get your strength back."

Kim nodded and slowly pulled herself away from the older woman. She rubbed her red, swollen eyes free of any linger tears then slowly stood up. Shego stood with her to and placed her hand on her shoulder for support. She pulled her in close as they started to walk down the hallway in search of the nearest exit. Kim looked behind them as they walked, staring down the long, white hallway. She knew she wasn't anywhere near the room Ron was in but she still felt like she was looking right at it and could practically feel Ron's eyes on her.

_I'm sorry Ron. I'm just so, so sorry,_ she thought sorrowfully with another tear rolling down her right cheek.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was near dawn when the pair arrived home. The events of the last few hours had been exhausting and it was now finally starting to catch up with them. Kim in particular could barely make it through the door. Her eyes dropped and her shoulders slumped as she dragged her feet through the living room. Shego was close behind her and was just _slightly_ more awake and coherent then her girlfriend but she was very much looking forward to slipping into bed and getting some sleep after all this whole ordeal. Which is why she let out an loud, irritated growl when she heard the phone ring.

"Kimmie, why don't you go ahead into the bedroom and I'll deal with whoever the hell this is," she snarled.

The redhead nodded wordlessly as she continued to her make her way towards for the bedroom. Shego watched her for a second then stomped into the kitchen to stop that annoying ringing. She snatched the phone off the hook and brought it roughly to her ear.

"What?!" she snarled.

"Shego?! Is everything alright?" Ann's distressed voiced sounded from the other side.

The pale green woman let out a small sigh of relief and embarrassment as she relaxed.

"Sorry about that Ann, it's been kind of a...rough night," she explained.

"So I've heard. Some friends from the hospital called and told me what happened to Ron. Is he alright?"

"Well..he's...stable," Shego answered, not really sure what to tell her. "But apparently his face is going to be scarred up for...ever. And he won't be able to talk again."

She heard a horrified gasp from the other end of the line.

"Oh my God. Poor Ron..." Ann whispered in shock.

"Yes it's...well it's not the best situation to deal with," the pale green woman replied with a heavy sigh.

"I take it Kim's not handling it well."

"Not really," she response as she twirled a strand of her ebony longs around her finger nervously. "That kinda brings me to my next question. Do you...think you can watch Shin for another day? With everything that's going on here lately I don't think Kimmie's really ready to handle her again and _I've_ got to deal with _her_, so..."

Shego could almost feel the smile on Ann's lips as she answer.

"Of course," she said cheerfully. "It's kind of been fun having another baby around here. Plus the boys have taken a real liking to their baby niece."

"I'm gonna pretend I didn't hear that last part. Just make sure they don't try to launch her into space or something."

"Oh you sound just like Kim."

_Well now _there's_ something I never thought I'd hear in my life,_ Shego thought in amusement. Aloud she replied, "Well in any cause I appreciate it. And, um, Ron's parents...?"

"I'll break the news to them," Ann replied in a more somber tone.

"Good. Thanks for everything Ann."

"You're welcome. Just do you best to help my daughter through this, alright?"

"Trust me, I will."

"I know."

Shego nodded then after saying her goodbye she hung up the phone and headed towards the bedroom she shared with Kim, her feet dragging even more. When she stepped inside she found Kim laying face down on the bed, fast asleep. Apparently the redhead had managed to get her mission cloths off but collapsed before changing into her usual sleep attire. So she laid there in nothing both her pink bra and matching panties with her head turn to the left and a slight puddle of drool starting to form under her open mouth. Despite everything that had happened recently, Shego couldn't help but giggled a bit at the image.

She picked up Kim's discarded clothes and dropped them into the hamper next to the dresser before she stripped out of her classic black and green catsuit and tossed it into tho hamper as well. She then made her way over to the bed and carefully crawled onto it, not wanting to wake Kim. Of course given how exhausted she seemed, Shego highly doubted she could wake her even if she completely shoved her off the bed. Which in a way was a good thing because it allowed her to pull the covers over both of them and rolled Kim's body into her arms. The sleeping girl quickly readjusted to the new position and placed her head on Shego's shoulder just above her left breast. As she laid there she let a few whimpers while whispering Ron's name sorrowfully. Shego looked down at her helplessly, not really sure what she could do to sooth her lover's no doubt awful dreams. She settled for simply rubbing Kim's back and giving her a kiss on the forehead.

"Everything will be alright Kimmie," she whispered softly, trying to convinced herself as much as the sleeping redhead. "Everything will be alright."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ron watched the TV absently as he laid in his hospital bed. JD was standing near him and telling him something about the healing process and what they're doing to make sure he was going to be okay and a bunch of other stuff he really wasn't paying attention to. He wasn't trying to be rude or anything, it was just that his thoughts were preoccupied by something else. Something much more important. Something that had been bothering him for quite awhile now.

His face hurt. Not just from the scars he got in the explosion but also from all the surgeries he had to try to get _rid_ of those scars. His entire_ head_ felt sore because of it. He had a headache from listening to all the stupid beeping from the heart monitor, his eyes itched from the bandages scratching against his lids each time he blinked and his throat was still really sore. Apparently _that_ was taking its own sweet time to heal up as well. It didn't hurt as much as it had when he first arrived but it was still too sore for him to eat solid foods and so they had to give him chicken or beef broth.

_Joy!_ He thought bitterly. _Man I'd _love_ a naco about now._

His stomach growled at the thought of his most cherished culinary treat and he tried to think of something else to get his mind off it. Unfortunately, the only other thing he could really think about was the horrible situation he was in. His face was messed up beyond _all_ repair, they had told him that enough times, his voice was _completely_ gone and worst of all, Kim hadn't stopped by to visit him in the week and a half he had been stuck in the hospital. His parents stopped by and of course Bonnie was there almost every day and even Kim's mom stopped in to see him a few times. But not Kim herself. It depressed him but it didn't really surprise him. Knowing Kim, she was probably blaming herself for what happened to him and bumming hard. It was not out of character for her but it _was_ really stupid. After all it wasn't her fault he was injured, it was his own. He was being is usual goofy, careless self and he paid the price for it. Which, oddly enough, wasn't the _worst_ pain he felt, despite the seriousness of his injuries.

Hurting Kim? _That_ was what really got to him. It actually hurt him _more_ than his scars. He hated, absolutely hated, seeing that depressed and downtrodden look on her face. Especially when he was the cause of it. It was part of the reason he stayed away from her immediately after their breakup. Not only because his own feelings were hurt but because every time he saw that sad expression on her usually chipper face, it just twisted his insides even more. If that was how she reacted to their mostly mutual breakup, he couldn't even imagine what she would look like when she thought she responsible for his accident.

And yet, oddly enough, he actually _wanted_ to see her. Yes it would be painful for both of them, but like getting over their relationship, it was really something that _had_ to be done for them both to move on. At least, he hoped they could move on. He still wanted to be a part of her life but he wasn't sure if he could handle causing her pain every time he saw her.

Ron shook his head to try to clear away those bad thoughts. The last thing he needed was to make himself even _more_ depressed. Instead he decided to turn his attention to what JD was saying.

"...and from what the plastic surgeons tell us you should be up and around soon," he concluded as he put the chart back down into the holder attached to the foot of the bed. He then looked at Ron with a more serious expression. "Look man, I know this whole situation sucks you've got to take the good with the bad. I mean, it could have been a whole lot worse, right? And you have no idea how many people I've seen come in here looking perfectly healthy and then dropping dead. It's...not really the best part of being a doctor. So I hope you'll forgive me if I try a little harder to get you to appreciate that you're still alive and try to keep you that way."

Ron nodded slightly.

"Good," JD nodded with him. "And hey look at this way you're getting some great plastic surgery out of it all. Most people can't even afford to get the stuff they _want_ done. Though I've never really been sure why exactly people would want to fix things that's not really wrong with them. I mean if you have one gazanga larger than the other you'd need it right?" he joked as he held one hand close to his chest and the other further out. "Other than that I just don't get it. Although there _is_ one thing I've always wanted to do if I ever got plastic surgery."

He ended his sentence by tilting this head to the left and looking up, his eyes taking on a far away look.

_XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX_

"Alright now we're going to take the bandages off slowly," Turk warned JD.

The bandaged doctor just nodded as he laid in his hospital bed. He looked around him to see all his friends where there; Turk of course, Carla, Elliot, and naturally Dr. Cox. He smiled happily under his bed as he felt the concern and care radiate from them. He closed his eyes as Turk started to unwind the bandages wrapped around his head. Within seconds the white gauze was off and everyone gathered in the room let out a gasp at the sight before them.

"How do I look?" JD asked.

"You look great," Turk replied as he handed his friend a mirror.

JD slowly lifted the hand mirror to his face, his hand shacking nervously. He stopped half way when saw the right have of his face which looked as it always did. He continued to move the square mirror over until he caught sight of the left side of his face which he had worked on. That side of his face no longer looked like him at all. Now, it was a perfect replica of Turk's face from his bald head right down to his mole. A wide smile crossed JD's now two tune lips as he looked up at Turk.

"Now we'll be together forever," he said affectionately.

"Just like it was always meant to be," Turk said back as he patted his friend on the shoulder.

_XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX_

"Life would be _so _prefect," JD muttered absently as his fantasy ended.

Ron stared uncomfortably at the day dreaming doctor. He _really_ wished he was able to walk out of the room right now. Thankfully, the rather awkweird moment was brought to an end when the sounds of footsteps and a slight whirling sound approached the room. Both Ron and JD looked towards the door to see a boy in a high tech wheelchair and a Latino girl entering the room.

"May I help you?" JD asked cautiously.

"We're friends of Ron. We just wanted to visit him for a bit," the boy explained.

The doctor looked towards Ron who merely nodded in reply.

"Well alright then. I guess I'll leave you three alone," JD said then walked out of the room.

Ron watched him go then turned his attention to Felix and Zita as they moved towards the bed. While it wasn't much of a surprise to see Felix, seeing Zita _did_ surprise him. Especially seeing them...together.

_Wait. Are they _together_ together?!_ He thought in confusion. _Naaah! That couldn't be...well maybe. It's surprising but-well I mean it could...huh._

"Hey Ron man, how ya doing?" Felix asked lamely.

A slight shift in the bandages indicated that Ron cocked his eyebrow at the question. A slight blush came to Felix's face as he realized how dumb is question was.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," he remarked. "But it was the only thing I could think of to start off the conversation. But aside the _obvious_ how are you doing?"

Ron shook his right hand a bit in the classic "so-so" motion. He then pointed to Felix then Zita and moved his finger between them in an inquiring manner.

"Oh. Yeah. We're kind of a...couple now," Zita stated uncomfortably.

Ron's eyes widened behind his bandages.

"It's a bit of a shock, isn't it?" Felix tried to joke.

He nodded.

"Look, the only reason I didn't tell you before now was cause...it was kind of...weird. You know with the whole 'guy code' and everything. But it's not like I went after her right after you guys stopped dating or anything."

"Especially since you weren't even at the school right after we broke up," Zita pointed out.

"Yeah there is _that_."

Ron brought up a finger to interrupt them and tried to think of the best way to make a questioning gesture with his hands but couldn't think of anything. Thankfully, Zita seemed to pick up on his intentions.

"How did we get together?" she asked for him.

He nodded again.

"Actually it's kinda funny," she mused. "I mean we barely saw each other at school but we kept running into each other at gaming conventions. One day we decided to go out for lunch and well...things kinda took off from there."

"And we've been having fun since then," Felix added. "Even though she DOES get a little cranky when I level up before her in Everlot."

Zita suddenly glared down at him as she placed her hands on her hips.

"It doesn't count when you cheat!" she started firmly.

"Hey knowing a few nifty tricks isn't cheating. It's just good game playing," he countered.

"Just keep telling yourself that."

Felix shook his head then looked back up at Ron with a more serious expression.

"So...you're okay with this, right man?" he asked.

Ron nodded as he raised his hand and made the "OK" sign. Both Felix and Zita smiled in relief and relaxed a bit.

"Good," Felix nodded. "And to help break the tension a bit more I brought something along you might like."

With that he pressed a button on the arm of his cyber-robotic wheelchair and a small laptop flipped up from the side. He detached and opened it then did a bit of type. A few seconds later he placed it carefully into Ron's lap as a video began to play. The clips on the screen alternated between shots of old video games and a young man with dark hair and glasses dressed in a white button up shirt and tons of pens in his shirt pocket playing them. And he didn't look very happy to be doing so. While all that was going on, a rather unique song was playing.

"He's gonna take you back to the past

To play the shitty games that suck ass

He'd rather have a buffalo

Take a diarrhea dump in his ear

He'd rather eat the rotten asshole

Of a road kill skunk and down with beer

He's the angriest gamer you've ever heard

He's the Angry Nintendo Nerd

He's the Angry Atari/Sega Nerd

He's the Angry Video Game Nerd"

When the theme song ended a cartoon title card appeared of The Nerd fighting off a horde of zombies with the title "Zombie Mayhem" above it. That faded away to show The Nerd himself sitting on a couch with a game disk in his hand and an irritated expression on his face.

"Zombie Mayhem for the original Gamestation. Oh man was _this_ a huge piece of donkey shit," he started out.

Unfortunately he didn't get much farther as Ron paused the video. He noticed his friends' questioning looks and minimized the video's window so he could bring up a writing program to type up a quick message before he handed the laptop back to Felix.

"It hurts too much to even TRY to laugh right now," the screen read.

"Oh right," Felix nodded and closed the laptop. "Well maybe when you're feeling better. It's a great episode."

"Yeah," Zita added with a giggle. "He really tears that game a new one. Though is it bad it kinda makes me want to play it?"

"I think it has that effect on everyone."

The two shared a quick laugh before Felix's expression grew serious again.

"Hey Zita, would you mind leaving us alone for a bit?" the brunette boy requested.

The Latino girl looked at him quizzically for a second before she glanced between the two and Felix's meaning sank in.

"Oooh right. Yeah I'll just go get us a soda or something," she said before she left the room.

Felix waited until she was down the hallway a bit before he wheeled his chair closer to Ron's bed.

"Alright, I tried to think of a lot of ways to say this without sounding cliche but unfortunately I couldn't come up with anything better," he confessed. "So here goes." He paused to give a sigh. "Ron, I know how you feel."

Ron gave him an odd look as best he could through the bandages.

"Yeah, yeah like I said, total cliche," he remarked as he shook his head in shame. "But it's true. I mean I'm sure you don't want to hear this word but you _are_ handicapped now."

A long exhale from Ron's nose signaled a sigh of acceptance as he nodded a bit.

"Good," the wheelchair bound boy nodded back. "At least you can accept it. That's the most important part. Trust me, it really wasn't easy for me to come to terms with this," he said, gesturing to his legs. "I was probably feeling the same way you are now, angry, fearful, depressed. You know, all the good emotions."

He laughed a bit and from what he could see through the bandages it looked like Ron was smiling as well. It was a good start.

"Eventually I realized there were one of two things I could do. I could either stay depressed and angry and just become more bitter or I could accept my fate and move on. I decided to do that latter. I mean, yeah obviously there are some things I'm just not going to be able to do, but for the most part I can still live a pretty normal life and have fun. I mean I beat _you_ on the basketball court plenty of times, right?"

Ron waved his hands and shook his head in a "Not true!" motion.

"Oh don't give me that! You _know_ I beat you," Felix shot back. "I swear you're a sore a loser as Zita."

He crossed his arms over his chest and glared.

"Okay, okay, no picking on the guy who can't comment back," he agreed. "But at least this shows you're dealing with it. And that's the most important part. You can't let the handicap control you, you have to control it. Again, I know that sounds _really_ cheesy but it's true. It's how I learned to get over everything and just...deal," he shrugged. "It's not going to be easy though. People _are_ going to stare at whatever scars you're going to have left. Just like people stare at my wheelchair when they first meet me. I mean just look how Kim reacted."

Ron rolled his eyes and nodded vigorously.

"See. I could have been offended by that but I know she was just trying to be nice so I took it with a grain of salt and let her get to know the real me instead of just the chair. You've just gotta keep at it and eventually people will look past your scars and get to know you. Of course it'll help that you're friends will all be behind you no matter what. You know that, right?"

He smiled as best he could and nodded again.

"Good," Felix smiled. "Cause otherwise I'd have to call Zita back in here to bop you on the head and trust me she does it pretty well."

He chuckled and even Ron seemed to laugh a bit before he went into a strange wheezing fit. Felix looked alarmed and turned his chair to go get someone when Ron sudden grabbed onto his arm. He shook his head then pointed to himself and gave an "OK" sigh with his free hand.

"Are you sure?" his friend asked.

He nodded to hopefully reassure the other boy.

"Well if you say so," Felix remarked, calming down a bit.

The sounds of footsteps out in the hallway drew their attention. They each thought it was just Zita returning with the promised sodas so they were surprised to see Kim standing in the door way. Ron especially. The former couple starred at each other from across the room and the tension in the air was palpable. So much so that Felix began to feel not only uncomfortable by it but also a bit smothered.

"Umm...I think I'm gonna take off now. You sure you're gonna be alright man?" he asked Ron once again.

The bedridden boy made one more "OK" sigh and Felix nodded. He then wheeled out of the room, giving a quick "Hello" and "Goodbye" to Kim as he passed her. The redhead returned the pleasantries then turned her attention back to the person laying in bed. Her best friend, her better half, her former boyfriend. One of the most important people in her life. And he was laying there all thanks to her. What was she suppose to say to him? What _could_ she say to him?

Without really knowing what she was going to do she started to walk forward. She to exactly three steps into the room before her composure completely broke down and she ran towards him as her eyes flooded with tears. When she reached the bed she hugged him as best she could as she blubbered into his shoulder.

"I'm sorry Ron! I'm so, so, _so_ sorry!" she cried. "I didn't mean to let this happen to you! It's all my fault! I-I should have been more careful. _I_ should have returned that stupid scroll! I just...I-I-I..."

Ron just laid there in stunned silence. He knew Kim would have blamed herself but she didn't know she would take it _this_ badly. He wanted to tell her that it was all okay. That he _didn't_ blame her for the accident it and was all _his_ fault. He _wanted_ to, but he couldn't. He literally _couldn't_! And it was tearing him up inside. So much he wanted to say and he just lacked the ability to do so. So instead he just wrapped his arms around her and hugged her with all the strength he had, hoping it would convey his message.

The two stayed like that for a long time, longer than either of them could really tell. Not that it mattered though. All they really cared about was being there for each other again. Even though it had only been a week and a half since they had seen each other it just _felt_ like a lot longer. Especially considering all the personal agony they had been through over that short period of time. It's what they were both getting out at the moment; Kim with her crying and Ron with this hugging. Eventually, Kim pulled away from Ron and sat back in the chair next to the bed. She sniffled and rubbed the remaining tears out of her red, puffy eyes.

"I'm sorry Ron I just...I don't know what came over me," she said. "Wait. No. I _do_ know what came over me. I did this to you! I let you go off without even thinking about it and you got hurt! Shego keeps telling me it's not my fault but it is! How could it not be?"

Ron stared at her in amazement for several seconds before he frantically started to look around the room. He pointed to a small desk on the other side, indicating that Kim needed to go check it out. She cocked an eyebrow at the request but went ahead and did it anyway. She checked the top of the desk and found nothing but when she pulled out the drawer she found a note pad and a pencil. She held them up to him and he nodded excitedly. She then brought the items over to the bed and handed them over. He snatched them away and quickly scribbled something down. He then tore off the note and handed it over to her.

"NOT your fault! Mine!" the note read.

Kim blinked in surprised as she sat back down in the chair. She stared at the note a bit before she looked up at Ron, her eyes starting to water over again.

"But...I..." she started again.

Ron held up a hand to cut her off then wrote another note and passed it to her.

"**I** was the one who wasn't paying attention. **I** screwed up, not you."

"No," Kim shook her head. "If I was being more careful, if I was being the...leader I should have been then you wouldn't have gotten hurt."

"I can take care of myself. I just screwed up," another note read.

"But you're only in the situation because of _me_!"

Ron started to write something else, but then stopped and tore of the small piece of paper and crumpled it up. He let out a small sigh through his nose before he wrote a new note and handed it over.

"How about we stop playing the blame game? We BOTH screwed up. I got hurt but I'm kinda okay now. How about we both move on?"

A small smile tugged at Kim's lips as she looked over the note.

_Same old Ron,_ she thought happily. Aloud she said, "Yeah. Yeah I think that's for the best."

She reached out and laid her hand on top of his. He smiled beneath his bandages and turned his hand over so he could gently squeeze hers. She squeezed back as she looked up at his wrapped head.

"Ron I just want you to know that I'm going to be here for you," she said gently. "We all will. Me, Bonnie, Rufus, even Shego. We're all going to help you get through this. But you've got to be strong too. You've got to help us. I know it's not really like you but I also know something like this could change someone. Please just...don't get too withdrawn, okay?"

He nodded then slipped his hand out of hers so he could write again.

"I won't KP, I promise. But I'm going to need some time to myself. I need to think some things over."

She nodded herself. "Of course. Just know we're here for you. _I'm_ here for you."

"I know. Thanks KP. You're the best friend I ever had," he next note said.

Another tear ran down Kim's cheek as she leaned forward and hugged him again.

"And you're the best friend I ever had," she repeated. "I don't ever want to lose you. I don't know what I'd do if I did."

Ron set the pad and pencil aside then wrapped his arms around her again. It was kind of weird that this kind of embrace might have felt a bit awkward during the last few weeks of their relationship but now, as just friends again, it felt comfortable. It felt right. The relationship just seemed to make things too complicated. They had all those ideals and social pressures they're supposed to live up to. But here they could just be themselves and realize that they would always be there for each other. They were best friends through and through and at least _that_ would never change.

But Ron knew deep down that if he wanted to stay by Kim's side, to truly be the friend-the _partner_-she needed then he would have to do something drastic. Something he had been mulling over for awhile now and this whole incident just did more to reinforce the idea. Unfortunately, it'd mean he'd have to break this promise to Kim. He'd _have_ to go away for awhile. He didn't want to but it _had_ to be done. There was just no other way around it.

_I have to go back..._ he thought solemnly as he laid his head back and held Kim tighter.

**To Be Continued...**

**Author's Notes: **Well seems I just missed making an update in February. Stupid shortest month of the year, could have just made if it had more days. Well...no use crying over spilled milk I suppose. So there was this chapter. A simple title for a pretty emotionally heavy chapter. It's part of why it took so long to write, it's really hard to keep up that level of emotions all the time. I certainly hope you guys all enjoyed it though. I know it's not the most exciting or action packed chapter but it had to be written. I would like to think the inclusion of the doctors from Nip/Tuck helped lighten the mood a bit. Especially Christian's interaction with Dr. Cox. I know I was personally excited for that. Just the idea of putting those two together in a scene was just too good to pass up. Of course Dr. Cox stole the scene but he pretty much steals most of the scenes he's in. Mostly because he has so much dialogue! Much respect to John C McGinely for not only being able to _say_ all that dialogue but also for getting it all out in almost one breath most of the time. God's speed to that man.

The other "cameo" in this chapter of course being the small appeared by Internet sensation The Angry Video Game Nerd. Created and played by the extremely talented James Rofle. It's a great series and I recommend everyone check it out at www. cinemassacre .com. Just fill in the blanks cause of FF.N's weird non link thing they do. I have to warn you though The Nerd videos are full of cursing so timid ears probably shouldn't listen to it. But he also have a lot of other great videos up and I highly recommend that you guys check 'em out.

The theme song from the AVGN series was written and sung by James' equally talented friend Justin Kyle. It's a simple melody but one of the catchiest damn themes ever. And popular to remix apparently given all the different versions of it floating around on YouTube.

Well anyway time to bring this rambling to a close. Be sure to come back for the next chapter to see where exactly it is that Ron needs to return to. Though I'm pretty sure you guys who are familiar with the series might already have figured that part out.

Next time guys!


	3. Return to Yamanouchi

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kim Possible. She is owned by Disney and Mark McCorkle and Bob Schooley. Any original characters shown or mentioned belong to me and can not be used without permission. Got it?_

**Sidekick, No More**

**Chapter 3: Return to Yamanouchi**

Ron's ride home from the hospital was obviously a silent one. Not just from him but from his parents as well. They just weren't really sure what they could say. Like Ron, they had been given all the information about his...condition from the doctors but the whole situation felt so surreal. It was hard to believe that their little Ronnie would always have scars and might not ever be able to talk again. Even the hope of a mechanical voice box was off the table as his voice cords were too badly damaged for it to work properly. So they would just have to accept the fact that they would never hear their little boy's joyous laughter again. And of course they'd all have to learn sign language. It was a dire time and they knew they had to be strong for their son. They were just trying to figure out how at the moment.

For his part, Ron was lost in his own thoughts. He had come to a very hard decision while laying in that hospital bed. One that would cause him to break a promise he made to Kim which he wasn't exactly thrilled with doing. Not to mention it would _really_ upset Bonnie, even more so than she was now. That meant hurting the two most important girls in his life and he just wasn't sure he could do that. But he also knew he _had_ to follow through with his plans if he was ever going to live with himself again and rise above what he was now. More than just the scarred boy people were going to feel sorry for and definitely more than just a sidekick. He had briefly thought about just giving up on the hero business but he knew he couldn't do that. Not only because he felt he would be letting Kim down, which after last night he _definitely_ couldn't do, but also because he actually _liked_ being a hero. He liked the feeling he got from helping people even if it was usually accompanied by heart stopping terror.

_And that's exactly why I need to train. To get better. So I can stand next to KP, and Shego, and not be an embarrassment, _he thought firmly. _But...can I really leave everybody for that long?_

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt the car stop. He looked up from behind his bandages to see that they had arrived home. He reached up to open the car door but his mother already opened it from the outside. She reached down to help him out, but he just held up a hand to stop her and got out of the car himself. She looked at him a somewhat apologetically. He just shook his head and waved his hand to indicate it was fine. They then walked over to the front door where his dad was waiting for them. He paused as he held his hand on the knob and turned back to Ron.

"It's-it's good to have you home son," he said sullenly. "Even if it isn't exactly under the best of circumstances. Just know that your mother and I will be here to help you as much as you need. And that we've missed you very much."

He then opened the door and Ron barely got a step inside when he heard a high pitched squeal and saw a small pink object flying towards him.

"Ron!" Rufus cheered happily as he hugged his master's chest.

Ron used one hand to hug the naked mole rat back. Truth be told he really missed his little buddy while he was in the hospital. Their stupid, "No Pets" rule made it impossible for him to come visit him and even the times Bonnie or Kim had tried to sneak him in, he was almost tracked down by that insane Janitor.

"Looks like someone else missed you too," Ron's dad smiled.

"Uh huh! Uh huh!" Rufus nodded enthusiastically.

Ron padded Rufus on the head before he placed him into his familiar pocket, where the naked mole rat let out a content sigh as he reclined against the fabric.

"We tried to take care of him while you were in the hospital but the list you have is rather...demanding," Mr. Stoppable remarked.

"Yes we never realized how much work it was taking care of Rufus," Mrs. Stoppable added. "It made us realize how responsible you've been this whole time. We're very proud of you."

_So they're proud of me for taking care of Rufus but the whole 'save the world thing' just kinda gets unnoticed. Wow, my parents ladies and gentlemen,_ Ron though wearily.

He then pointed out to the hallway, indicating he wanted to head to his room. His parents looked at each other for a second before they caught on.

"Oh, you want to go to you room?" his father asked for confirmation.

Ron nodded.

"Well alright. But if you need anything just come to your mother or I. We'll be in to check on you shortly to see how you're doing."

Ron nodded again then plodded out of the living room towards his bedroom. Once inside, he quickly closed the door and sat down on the edge of the bed. He didn't want to lay down because he'd be laying in bed for a week now and he was sick of it. He just wanted to take a moment to think about what he was planning. It was a big move and again, it'd mean leaving the people who cared about him for at least a few months. Maybe even a year or so. Could he really do that everyone? They were all worried about him enough as it was, so suddenly leaving almost right after he got out of the hospital might make them freak out even more. Maybe it would be better if he just stayed home for awhile and got use to his new condition.

_No!_ He thought fiercely as he stood up. _I gotta do this now! I can't get lazy again. That's how I got into this situation in the first place. It's gonna be tough, but I _have_ to do it. _

With this mind made up, he started to move over to his computer desk but paused when he saw his reflection in his dresser mirror. He stared at his bandaged face for a moment. He really hadn't seen his face since all the surgery so he wasn't really sure what he looked like now. Oddly enough he hadn't really given it much thought. He just knew he wasn't going to look the same and that seemed to be enough to put him into a funk. But just _how_ bad did he look? Maybe he should find out now.

His hands shook nervously as he slowly brought them up to the top of his head. He unfastened the clasp holding them all together and was about to unwind the bandages but then suddenly stopped and put the clasp back.

_Maybe...maybe I should wait for that. Yeah, I'm not ready to see this yet,_ he thought in despair.

He instead decided to focus on his original task. He sat down at his computer desk and started to rifle through the drawers, looking for a slip of paper he hadn't thought about in a long time. It was one Yori had slipped to him when she kissed him during that whole "Gorilla Fist" incident. Of course being the skillful ninja she was he hadn't even noticed it until he returned home and stated clearing out his pockets. He was actually a little surprised when he looked at it just for the simple fact that it had an e-mail address written on it. Though looking back on it now he really shouldn't have been _that_ surprised since they _did_ have a super secret ninja jet to pick them up and move them around. Though the fact that it was her _personal_ e-mail address did catch him off guard.

Still it worked out for the best because it was exactly what he needed right now. He waited for his computer to start up then went to his e-mail account and typed in Yori's address. In the subject line he wrote one simple sentence:

"I'm coming back!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Kim smiled from her place on the couch as she watched Shego play with Shin on the floor. Even after all this time she was still amazed at how...motherly the former super villain could be around the toddler. It was just such a contradiction to see the usually rough and tough Shego being so cute and cuddly. It was an odd sight to be sure, but one that always brought a smile to her face and gave her a warm feeling in her heart.

Which was _exactly_ what she needed now considering everything that had happened in the last week. She was still trying to figure out how she could help Ron deal with this condition. Heck she was still trying to figure out how to deal with it _herself_. She just couldn't believe she'd never hear his voice again or see his infectious smile without some kind of scaring all over his face. It was going to take some time to get use to and it'd be a _huge_ adjustment for everyone. Especially Ron. She was just glad he was home right now and willing to stay and let everyone help him instead of doing something foolish.

The sudden ring of the doorbell took Kim out of her thoughts. She pulled herself off the couch to go answer the door and when she pulled it open she was surprised to see Rufus standing on the stoop with a small package in his paws and a sad look on his face.

"Rufus?" she asked in confusion then looked around. "Where's Ron?"

"Ron. Ron..." he little mole rat sobbed as he held up the package.

She raised an eyebrow in confusion then leaned down to pick up the forlorn pet even as she continued to look around for any sign of Ron. When she couldn't find any she shrugged with a slight sigh then walked back inside the house and returned to the living room.

"Who was at the door?" Shego asked as she glanced up at Kim.

"Rufus," Kim answered in a slightly confused voice.

"What?" the pale skinned woman asked, looking fully at her lover.

In response, the redhead just held out the depressed looking mole rat. She then carefully set him down on the coffee table as she sat down on the couch, snatching the package from him as she did so. Shego hefted Shin in her arms as she moved over to sit next to Kim. They spared each other a glance before Kim tore open the small brown package and reached into pull out an envelope baring the letters "KP" and Ron's e-Capsule. Her curiosity and confusion growing with every second she set the music player aside for the moment then carefully ripped open the envelope. She then pulled out and unfolded the letter inside then after a quick scan of it began to read it more closely.

"KP,

Look I know I agreed not to go off on my own or shut out you and Bonnie and the others but I feel like this is something I HAVE to do. Believe me I didn't make this decision lightly and I almost didn't go but I think in the long run this will all be for the best. I know you'll be mad at me and I can accept that just as long as you accept that this is what's best for me. Hey you used to always say I had a lot of potential right? Remember Potential Boy? Well I'm finally stepping up and trying to live up to all that potential. Just do you won't worry TOO much, I'm going back to Yamanouchi to continue my ninja training. I can't tell you more than that cause of the whole secret ninja school thing but just know that I'll be okay.

Oh and don't try to find me. I know that you and Wade seem to have this uncanny knack for that but like I said this is something I have to do on my own. I'll be back as soon as I can. I just hope you guys won't be too mad at me. And please watch over Rufus for me. I'm not quite sure my parents are up to the task of doing it. They apparently have some problems with the Rufus Care List. I've been teaching Bonnie how to follow it so she should be able out too. Not so much Shego though.

I'm also sure you're wondering about my e-Capsule, right? Well there's a song on it that I've been listening to for a few weeks now that kinda reminds me of how we've been over the last few months. It's already set to it so all you gotta do it turn it on and press play. Hope it'll be some comfort while I'm gone. Please give my apologizes to Bonnie and my best to Shego and Shin and know that I love all you guys very much. Yes even Shego. Just don't tell her I said that, okay?

Love,

Ron."

Kim stared blankly at the letter as she tried to come to terms with its meaning. Ron had...left? But he promised he wouldn't! How could he does this to her?! To Bonnie! To his parents?! To...everyone! How could he be so selfish?! She _told_ him to stay here! He should have listened to her!

_Wait. Isn't that just _me_ being selfish?_ she asked herself. _Did I really want him to stay here for his own good or for mine? I mean, yeah it's not going to help Ron to be locked up by himself but I suppose he won't be by himself at Yamanouchi. He'll have Sensei there as well as the other students and...Yori. _Her face scrunched up a bit at the thought of the ninja girl. _I'm sure _she'd_ just _love_ to help him! Stupid little sexy ninja temptress. Well he had just _better_ remember he has someone waiting for him at home. _

She sighed and leaned against the back of the couch. _Of course he's not going to do that. He's too decent a guy to cheat on Bonnie. And I know that. This whole thing has just got me so...frazzled! I just...I just hope Ron knows what he's doing. _

"Kimmie. Yo Kimmie," Shego prodded, shaking Kim's shoulder lightly.

"Huh? Wha?" Kim muttered as she came back to reality.

"I asked what does the note say?"

"Ron's gone," she said simply.

"What?!" Shego barked and snatched the letter away from her.

She balanced Shin in her arms as she eyes scanned up and down the letter. Her eyes narrowed and she gnashed her teeth as she crumpled the letter a bit.

"Why...that...little..." she sputtered, trying to keep her temper under control for the sake of her daughter.

"Shego..." Kim said softly, trying to keep the pale green woman from literally exploding.

"No Kimmie _don't_ try to calm me down! After all those things you said to him, trying to convince him to stay here, that jerk pulls _this_ crap?!"

Kim arched her eyebrows suspiciously as she looked at Shego.

"How did you...?" she half asked.

Shego's expression went from righteous indignation to shamefully embarrassed in an instant. She leaned back and hid half her face behind Shin's tiny body.

"Well..." she stalled. "I was kinda...sorta...standing outside the room while you're talking to him."

Kim continued to glare at her lover indignantly.

"Shego!" she admonished.

"Hey don't start with that! I was only there because...well...I wanted be there for you incase you needed to be comforted."

At that revelation, the redhead's expression softened into a sappy smile.

"Awwww. That's so sweet," she gushed.

"Hey calm on don't get all mushy on me," Shego requested. "I was just, you know, doing the good girlfriend thing." She then glanced down at the letter again. "So what's this song he was talking about anyway?"

Kim glanced over at the forgotten e-Capsule and picked it up.

"I don't know," she muttered as she clicked the wheel to turn it on.

The tiny LCD screen illuminated to show a white screen with the title "Good Life" displayed in simple black letters and name of the artist, Francis Dunnery, right underneath it in a similar style. Curious now, she placed the white buds in each ear then clicked the "Play" button to start the song. She was immediately greeted with a soft, soothing melody. After a few seconds the lyrics kicked in.

_Softly Now,  
You owe it to the world  
And everyone knows that you're my favorite girl  
But there's some things in life that are not meant to beI'm not meant for you and your not meant for me_

Kim's brow arched again at the line. It was almost exactly what she had told him when they broke up. Which she assumed is why this song reminded him of their break up. But his letter also said it reminded him of how they've been lately. So where did that part come in?

_  
Here's to our problems  
And here's to our fights  
Here's to our achings  
And here's to you having a Good life  
From Me  
Good Life_

That was probably it. They certainly had had a lot of drama when she started to date Shego. And to be fair she had her own when he started dating Bonnie. But still it all worked out for the best. And through it all Ron had been there to wish her a, well...good life. She smiled at the thought and leaned back into the couch a bit.

_  
Softer Now,  
You owe it to yourself  
And don't think that you will be left on the shelf  
Cause there's someone for you and there's someone for me  
Like me you'll meet them eventually_

Again she was surprised at how well the song had almost repeated her words. Not to mention that it actually came true. Both of them did find someone eventually. Ron was definitely on to something when he recommended this song.

_  
Here's to your lover  
And here's to my wife  
Here's to your children and here's to you having a good life  
From Me  
Good Life_

She glanced beside here where Shego was still holding Shin and looking at her intently. She smile softly then reached out and grabbed her lover's free hand. She gave it a gentle squeeze as an instrumental interlude began to play. She closed her eyes and could practically see Ron's face and hear his voice telling her all these soothing words. No matter what they went through he always wanted her to be happy and if he couldn't tell her himself he found a way to do it through song. It was comforting in it's own strange way.

Baby Baby Baby Baby  
Baby Baby Baby Baby Baby Baby  
Louder Now,  
You've lost all your pain  
You're married with children and happy again  
And now I'm regretting the move that I made  
Fatal mistakes are so easily made

She snapped her eyes open at those lines. Was that suppose to mean the mistake he made that led to his accident or...something else? Was he still a little upset about their relationship ending? No that couldn't be it. Could it?

_  
Enough of my problems they only cause fights  
Forget that I rang you  
And promise you'll have such a  
Beautifully happy and painlessly romantic  
Good life  
From Me  
Good Life_

She shook that last question from her head. There was no way he was still holding onto those kinds of feelings for her. Not after all this time. She was probably reading more into it then there was. It was just her mind trying to manage everything that had happened recently. Not to mention she was ruining Ron's gift. The song was meant to sooth her but here she was thinking all these weird things. It did work a bit though but really it just reminded her how much she missed him. She leaned against Shego for support, who had to readjust herself so she could hold Shin and Kim. The redhead closed her eyes once more as she rolled the dial back to start the song over again.

_Oh Ron. Please don't be gone for long,_ she thought sadly.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Buried deep within a high, mountainous region of Japan sat the secret Yamanouchi ninja school. It's very existence was known to only a handful of people. Most of whom stayed with the school their whole lives. Those outside its grounds who did know of it were swore to secrecy and any information leaked to the general public was very vague and cryptic, borderlining on mythic. For all their secrecy and training in the ancient ways, however, they are not afraid of relying on a few modern appliances.

Like the state-of-the art helicopter that was currently landing in the an open field just outside the school. The whirling blades kicked up small twisters of red and brown leaves from the ground and trees as well as the short raven locks of the lone girl watching it land. She pushed a few locks back past her left ear to clear her vision as she watched the blades slowly come to a stop. Once it was safe she straightened out her black ninja gi and hair before she walked over to the inactive helicopter to greet returning arrival.

Yori smiled slightly as she watched the copter's canopy open and two figures slowly emerge. The first being, of course, the pilot who was dressed in the black ninja garb of the other Yamanouchi students. It was the other person climbing out of the chopper that made her heart skip a beat though. It had been so long since she had seen him last and she was quite surprised to receive his e-mail. Surprised, but excited. It was an excitement that was growing the by second and she wanted to just run up to him and give him a big hug. Unfortunately, all that excitement drained away from her when she got a good look at him and remembered exactly why he had returned.

It was very odd to see Ron dressed in his usual American style hockey jersey and loose pants but with a heavily bandaged head. The only things she could see from behind the masking were his two brown eyes which were now filled with sadness and remorse rather than their usual cheerful gleam. Seeing him in such a state actually made Yori want to give him a hug even more. To comfort him and try to make it right somehow. But she knew that would be improper. So instead she just folded her hands in front of her and gave a slight bow when he stopped in front of her.

"It is good to see you again Stoppable-San," she greeted formally, then frowned a bit. "But you can imagine my surprise at the reason for your visit. And seeing you now..."

She left the sentence unfinished as she slowly started to reach up for his bandaged face. When he pulled away slightly it seemed to jolt her out of her daze and she instantly drew her hand back then spun around so he wouldn't notice the embarrassed blush on her cheeks. After she regained control of her emotions she turned towards him again.

"I will take you to see Sensei right away. He was very adamant to see you the moment you arrived. One of the other students will take your belongs to your room," she informed him.

He nodded then followed her as she started to walk back into the school grounds. He cast a glance back and was surprised to see his suitcases had already disappeared, as did the helicopter. Though he supposed he shouldn't have been, they _are_ ninjas after all.

_And with a little luck I'll learn some of those skills too this time,_ he thought.

They walked silently across the school's courtyard. The reason for Ron's silence was obvious, but Yori was quiet because she really couldn't think of anything to say at the moment. She was struggling with a lot conflicting emotions that was making it almost impossible for her to form coherent sentences. She resolved herself to just steal occasional over the shoulder glances at Ron when he wasn't looking. She tried to keep the pity out of her eyes as she was sure he didn't want that at the moment, but it was so hard not to feel sorry for him. Still, she had to stay strong for both their sakes.

They continued their quiet trek towards the small temple where the Lotus Blade was held. Ron raised an eyebrow behind his bandages and thought about trying to ask Yori about why they were headed for the building but he figured it was better to just wait and see what happened. When they reached the entrance, the ninja girl pushed open one of the massive, highly decorative wooden doors then motioned for him to follow her inside. Inside the temple was just as plain as it was outside. There were rows of wooden pillars holding the roof up with tall candelabra placed in between them to help light the spacious room. A long red and gold ornamental carpet ran from the doors to the small set of steps that led up to an alter at the other end of the room. In the middle of the alter, surrounded by several candles and burning incense and right below a long, well decorated scroll was the plain black box that held the Lotus Blade. Standing in front of _that_ as Sensei dressed in his usual dull red and yellow kimono, hands folded in the oversized sleeves and face hidden under his long white beard and eyebrows. Even though Ron couldn't see his expression through the hairy cover he had a feeling the old ninja teacher's expression was similar to the one Yori wore. He shrugged it off as he stepped forward, placed his hand together in front of him and gave a respectful bow.

"Ah Stoppable-San, your return is most welcome," Sensei greeted as he returned the bow. "Though I wish it was under better circumstances."

Ron nodded slowly.

"Now as to the reason for your return," Sensei stated as he turned and picked up the case to the Lotus Blade.

He then walked down the small steps and stopped just in front of Ron. He then pulled the old, wooden box open with a slight creak to reveal the centuries old blade within. The blond boy's eyes widened a bit as he looked down at the sword he once held in his hand. The sword connected to the power he wasn't even sure he wanted.

"The last time you were here you did not think yourself worthy of wielding the Lotus Blade," the old ninja master mused. "Do you believe you are ready now?"

Ron started to reach his hand out towards the weapon but suddenly stopped when his fingers were just inches away from the handle. He drew his hand back and shamefully shook his head. Sensei nodded then snapped the box closed, causing the boy to jump a bit.

"A wise decision," he nodded. "For in your current state you are _not_ ready to wield this weapon. But you are willing to learn, are you not?"

Ron nodded again, this time with more determination.

"That is good to know," Sensei mused before he walked back up to the alter and put the case back where it had been. "Long has the Lotus Blade waited for a proper person to wield it once more. I truly believe that person to be you Stoppable-San. But first you must come to terms with what you truly are; the master of the Mystical Moneky Power."

Ron's body tensed up at the statement. Rationally this knew this was the reason he came back to Yamanouchi and that it would help him reach his goal. But his irrational mind, the one that would _always_ be afraid of monkeys and the part that usually ruled his thoughts, still made him weary of even thinking about the Mystical Moneky Power much less trying to master it. But he _had_ to. He came all this way, there was no turning back now. He took a few deep breaths to calm his nerves then nodded slowly once again.

Sensei nodded back to him. "Good. Now I am sure your journey was a long and tiring one. You may retire for the night and you shall begin your training bright and early in the morning."

Ron gave a thumbs up sign before he and Yori turned to walk out of the small temple.

"Yori. A moment please," Sensei called to her.

Yori stopped and turned to look at her teacher in surprise. She looked back at Ron for a moment before Sensei motioned for him to continue.

"She will be with you shortly Stoppable-San. I simply wish to have a word with her in private for a moment."

Both the teens seemed a bit skeptical of the statement but nonetheless Ron continued on his way and waited patiently outside. For her part, Yori turned around to face Sensei again, not quite sure what her eccentric teacher would want. He stopped in front of her and looked her up and down before he looked back to the closed doors where Ron waited on the other side.

"You truly do care for him, don't you?" he asked bluntly.

Yori's eyes widened and a small blush appeared on her cheeks from the rather direct question. She tried to hide it from him but of course he could see through her attempts.

"I-I do not know what you mean Sensei," she tried to bluff.

"Do not think that just because I am old I do not see what is happening in my school. I noticed it the first time Stoppable-San visited. Your feelings for him are quite strong."

She still tried to deny the charges but gave in with a slight sigh then nodded as she folded her hands in front of her.

"I am sorry Sensei. I fear I have brought shame to Yamanouchi with my actions," she apologized.

Sensei chuckled a bit and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"You have nothing to be ashamed of my child. For one cannot control the actions of their heart."

"Your words are kind and wise as always Sensei," she said, offering a small bow.

He nodded. "But that is not the only reason I wished to speak to you. I want you to personally oversee Stoppable-San's training."

She was taken aback by that statement.

"But...if you know my feelings for him, why would you want me to train him? Would that not create a conflict of interests?" she asked.

"Actually those feelings are exactly the reason I want you to train him. He is in a fragile state at the moment and I believe our normal training techniques would only hinder his progression. What he needs not is only someone to train him but also to encourage him. To help him along on his road to recovery the way only someone who truly cares about him can. I know that you can be there person Yori."

"It-it would be my honor," she replied, barely suppressing a joyful smile.

"I have no doubt it will," he smiled back. "I believe the best way to handle his training would be for you to train him physically and I will train him mentally."

Again she was surprised. "You will personally train him?"

"Indeed. For to truly master the Mystical Moneky Power his mind and body must act as one."

Yori nodded silently at the wisdom of his words. She then looked towards the door again where she knew Ron was waiting for her.

"You may go to him now. Help him get readjusted to our school and our ways and of course to relax. He will need it for tomorrow's training. Which, of course, begins right and early tomorrow."

"Of course," she replied with a bow.

He bowed back and then the two parted ways, with Sensei watching as Yori met up with Ron again. He stroked his long, white beard in thoughtful repose, confident he had made the best choice for everyone involved.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The next morning came entirely too quickly for Ron. He had never been a early riser and the nearly two weeks he spent in a hospital bed did nothing to really improve that mentality. Between all that time in bed and the cramped helicopter ride over to Yamanouchi, not to mention sleeping on the floor, really made his muscles stiff and sore. He tried to work the kinks out of them as he walked through the school's courtyard to the training ground. He tugged nervously at the edges of the black ninja gi he was given to wear as well as his freshly done bandages. He must have been quite a sight dressed in his black garb with white wrapping around his head. Not very ninja like.

_And speaking of sights..._ he mused as he slowly came to a stop.

His eyes fixated on the quite lovely image of Yori doing stretches in the middle of the courtyard. He was mesmerized as he watched her lithe body stretch and bend to work out the kinks in her muscles. He paid particular attention to the way her own black gi contorted and wrapped itself around her impressive form. It was truly a thing of beauty and obvious she took _very_ good care of her body.

He appreciative gazing came to an abrupt stop when he thought of another girl with an impressive, healthy body. One that belonged to his beautiful, smart, funny and easily angered girlfriend Bonnie. In fact it was a quick mental image of Bonnie's angry face that made him quickly avert his eyes and take interest in the school's well kept grounds.

_Okay that was nothing right? I mean I didn't really _see _anything and only looked for a minute so I should be okay, yeah? I mean I know Bonnie and I are dating and I'm not gonna cheat on her or anything like that but I should still be able to occasionally at least _look _at another girl, right?_

He had another mental image of how that scenario would play out and winced a bit in imaginary pain at where Bonnie would hit him should she catch him doing such a thing.

_Maybe it'd just be easier if I gouged my eyes out too_, he thought desperately.

"Good morning Stoppable-San," Yori greeted, snapping Ron out of his daze.

He looked up at her and gave a small wave to return the greeting.

"It is good to see you were able to wake up by yourself at this early hour. And that you found the gi that was left in your room."

He nodded as he tugged on the hem of the gi's shirt again. He really wasn't sure how to react to her crack about getting up early so he just let it slide. He then followed her over to a more secluded part oft he courtyard where two wooden swords laid on the ground. She picked them up and handed one to him. He took it from her unsurely then pointed to it with a look of confusion on his face, though he was sure the didn't make it past the bandages. Fortunately she seemed to pick up on his confusion and gave him a reassuring smile.

"I thought it best to start out with something that wasn't quite so lethal," she explained.

He bobbed his head a bit as he realized it was a _very _good idea. He watched her walk to his side then plant her feet widely and firmly on the ground as she held the sword in front of her with both hands. She looked over at him with an expectant expression.

"Now you take the same pose," she instructed.

He did as he was instructed and took a pose similar to hers.

"Good. Now follow my example," she explained.

He paid closed attention as she raised the sword above her head then brought it down in a quick slash followed by a stab forward then a blocking move and a spinning slash to finish off her invisible opponent. Ron watch in eager fascination at the fluid movements of Yori's body. Even with her slowing down so he would watch her, they seemed to be happening in fast forward. It would be almost be impossible to follow her moments if she were moving at normal speed. At least at the moment it would.

"Now you try," she encouraged as she spun back around to him.

He swallowed nervously, an action that still made him flinch just slightly, then nodded and tried to repeat her actions. He barely missed hitting his own head when he raised the sword above him but he _did_ succeed in burying the hilt in his gut when he brought it down. He shrugged it off though and did the blocking move that Yori has done and tried to do the spinning slash but he just ending up spinning on his heels for a bit before he fell down into the dirt. Yori chuckled as she held out a hand to help him up.

"Perhaps we should try that again a little more slowly," she suggested with an amused smile.

Ron nodded enthusiastically as he accepted her hand and she pulled him to his feet. After he dusted himself off they returned to their starting positions and repeated the process, this time with Ron following Yori's movements step for step. It was still a rather unimpressive display but at least it was a little better than his first attempt.

The morning continued on in such a manner, with Yori showing Ron some new move and him slowly learning his way through it. While he didn't think he was doing very well, she was actually quite amazed by his progress. Not only was he doing better than the first time he was at Yamanouchi but he was actually doing better than some of the students that had been there for awhile. Before either of them knew it, he went from simply learning from her to actually sparring with her. Quite well in fact. She of course still scored more hits on him, but he actually blocked quite a few of her strikes and even landed some of his own. So much so that he was starting to get a little cocky. He smirked under his bandages as he knocked away another one of Yori's attacks.

_Hey I think I'm starting to get the hang of this!_ he thought excitedly.

THWACK!

His eyes crossed and he dropped his sword as he fell to the ground from the hit he took to the top of his head.

_Or maybe not_, he corrected as he rubbed the sore spot while Yori chuckled softly.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Once he was done with his training session with Yori, and after some much needed rest to heal all the sore parts on his body now, Ron headed to the temple where the Lotus Blade was held to start his training with Sensei. He walked into the small building to find the old ninja master sitting cross legged on the floor. Ron stopped just in front of him and gave a respectful bow even though he wasn't entirely sure if Sensei was awake or not.

"Please sit Stoppable-San," Sensei requested.

_Guess that answers that_, he thought as he sat down in a similar pose to his teacher's.

"Good. Now close your eyes and clear you mind," the ninja master instructed as he closed his own eyes.

Ron shrugged his shoulders then closed his eyes and tried to clear his mind. Contrary to popular belief it wasn't as easy as it sounded. Especially with all the thoughts that had been running through his head the past few days.

"Do not _try_ to clear your mind, simple do..." Sensei instructed as if he could sense Ron's struggle. "Take slow, deep breaths. Become one with your surroundings and yourself. Allow the spirit of the world to flow through you."

As odd as it sounded, listening to Sensei's voice actually _did_ help Ron relax and clear his mind. There was just something so soothing about his words and tone that washed away all the anxieties that were troubling him. As his breath fell into a steady rhythm he felt like he _could_ feel the world around him. Feel the gentle wind blow against his face from the open windows. Feel the smooth, well polished wooden floor panels underneath him. He swore he could even feel the heat from the candles around him.

Then, right as he was getting use to that feeling, a completely new one overtook him. A sort of light headed feeling like when someone was just on the edge of being asleep and awake. A feeling of...oneness that he had never felt before. Like he was part of everything around him and yet, somehow, apart from it too. It was really kind of weird but strangely...soothing.

"Now open your eyes again Stoppable-San," Sensei told him.

When he did open his eyes, Ron was shocked to find that they were no longer in the temple but rather in...

"Space?!" he screamed in surprise. "What are we doing in space?! How did we get here?! How are we breathing?" He paused and blinked. "Wait, how am I talking?!"

"The answer to all those questions is quite simple. We are no longer in our bodies but on the Astral

Plane," Sensei explained as he stood up.

Ron stared at him blankly.

"Uuuuuhhhh..."

"It is the realm of the mind. Were the truly enlightened can free themselves form their minds and travel anywhere they wish in the world or beyond."

"Oooohhh. Like how you're able to contact me with mystery meat gravy while you're captured by DNAmy!" the blond boy remarked as it dawned on him.

"Exactly."

Ron blinked as he mulled that over. "Then what am _I_ doing here?"

Sensei chuckled a bit. "You underestimate yourself Stoppable-San. While it is true I am helping you at the moment, in time you will be able to astral project all on your own."

"I'm not so sure about that," Ron said, rubbing the back of his astral neck. "I'm also still not sure on how I'm talking."

"Simple enough. Because while your body may be damaged, your mind remains scar free. Observe."

With that, a small, square mirror suddenly appeared in front of Ron. Once he got over his initial shock he looked at the reflection of his astral form. He was shocked to see that it was...well...normal. No bandages, no scars, no nothing. Just his usual, slightly average looking self. He never thought he'd be so happy to see those annoying freckles again. He started to smile widely but it was quickly lost when he remembered where he was.

"This isn't real, is it?" he asked solemnly.

"It is a real as your mind wants it to be," Sensei replied sagely.

"No I mean when I get back to the body it's still going to be the same, isn't it?"

Sensei lowered his head a bit. "I am afraid so."

"That's what I thought," Ron sighed then slumped his shoulders.

The long bearded ninja master walked over to his student and padded him gently on the astral shoulder.

"Do not let it darken your spirits," he advised cheerfully. "You have the power to overcome this obstacle. Just as you have the power to overcome any obstacle if you merely put your mind to it."

"Yeah I've heard that one a lot. And I'm trying to but...it's a lot harder than I thought it would be," Ron confessed.

"The things that are truly worth having usually are."

The blond smiled a bit. "Yeah I guess that's true." He then looked around at the large, empty space they were standing in. "So...what exactly are we doing here anyway? I mean you didn't just bring me here for a pep talk did you?"

"In a way I did," Sensei said with just a hint of amusement in his voice. "Your mind is troubled. There is much guilt and anxieties weighing it down. To truly learn anything during your training you must put these fears to rest once and for awhile. Starting with the biggest one of all."

An overwhelming sense of dread started to creep over Ron.

"And...what would that be?" he asked, wringing his hands together nervously.

Keeping his hand on Ron's shoulder, Sensei turned them around to reveal an impossibly large monkey face looming over them with his gigantic maw opened wide as if it was going to swallow them both.

"AAAAAAAHHHH!!! Giant space monkey!" Ron screamed in utter terror before he leapt behind Sensei for cover.

Sensei merely stepped to the side to expose Ron to the giant monkey face again. He then reached down and pulled his pupil up to his feet again.

"No. You cannot run away from this fear forever," he instructed as he held him firmly in place. "You _must_ face it!" He then blinked behind his long eyebrows. "No pun intended."

"O-of course not," Ron remarked, still cowering a bit.

"_This_ is what is holding you back," Sensei revealed, pointing to the monkey face. "It not only represents your biggest fear but also _all_ your fears. Your feelings of inadequacy, your insecurities, your lack of focus, your lack of balance-"

"Okay, okay I get it!" he shouted. "It's starting to get a little insulting."

"I apologize. But it is a necessary evil. Once you learn exactly what it is your are facing, only then will you be able to defeat your foe. It is as true in the astral plane as it is in the physical plane. Confront your fears and embrace you destiny."

Ron still looked a little unsure.

"But...but what if it's _not_ my destiny?" he counted. "I only got the Mystical Monkey Power by mistake. I mean even Rufus got some of it! Are you sure it's not _his_ destiny?"

"I am sure," Sensei nodded. "He is an important part of your destiny but it _is _your destiny. The Mystical Monkey Power chose you because it knew the evil that lay within Monkey Fist's heart. He may have a portion of it but he is _not_ the Mystical Monkey Master. That title is for you alone. But you must accept it first."

The blonde boy stared at the massive moneky face again and could almost feel his actual heart beating faster. This _is_ what he came here for after all, but he still never though it would be _this_ hard. Or terrifying. But he knew Sensei was right, he'd have to face all his fears if he ever wanted to return to friends and family again. To be able to stand toe-to-toe with Kim and Shego. He took a deep breath and balled his hands into fists as he steeled his courage.

"Alright," he breathed in determination. "I'm ready."

"No you're not," Sensei said flatly.

Ron nearly fell over in surprise then stared wide eyed at the elder man.

"What?! Well then what was the _point_ of all this?!" he screeched.

"So get you to acknowledge your fears and know what they are," he said. "Beyond that moneky lays challenges as you have never known."

"Uh no offense Sensei but I _have_ dealt with some of the worse super villains out there," he said smugly. "Well...maybe not the worst but I've still dealt with plenty of henchmen, killer robots and death rays."

"Of that I am well aware. But it is much harder to face one's self than it is to face another enemy."

"Yeah I...guess that's true..." Ron mused as he thought it over. "So...is there anymore lessons for today or is that is?"

"Only this. The Mystical Monkey Power can grant you the ability to learn things here in months that would take most of our students years to learn. I'm sure you have already experienced this while training with Yori today?"

"Not really, I mean I think I kinda did good but Yori still mopped the floor with me."

"Did you get in a few hits of your own?"

"Yeah."

"That is more than most of our students can do after three months of being here."

Ron's eyes widened at that revelation. "Whoa."

"Indeed," Sensei nodded. "Imagine what else you can accomplish once you accept this power as part of yourself."

As Ron mulled the thought over, a bright flash came from the monkey's mouth and when his vision cleared he found himself back in the temple. He blinked a few times in confusion then shook his head to try to clear it. He looked over and noticed Sensei was already on his feet. Once he was sure he actually could stand again, Ron pulled himself to his feet and stared expectantly at Sensei.

"There is nothing further for today's lesson," he said. "Just think about what you learned today and allow it to guide your actions for our next session."

Ron nodded then bowed to him before he turned and walked out of the temple. Much to his surprise when he stepped outside he found it was already nighttime. It really didn't feel like that much time had past during his talk with Sensei but then again it never really felt like that much time past when he was dreaming either so he figured it worked like that.

_Still freaky though,_ he thought as he looked up at the starry night sky. _But he made some good points. Guess this is gonna be a lot harder than I thought after all. But I'm not going to run away this time. Those days are over. I'm gonna stick this out and see it though. I'll be better when I come back. Someone everyone can be proud of. Someone who deserves to be Kim Possible's partner. Someone who deserves to be Bonnie Rockwaller's boyfriend. Someone who isn't quite so...stoppable._

**To Be Continued...**

**Author's Notes: **Whew! Well this chapter took a _hell_ of a lot longer than it should have! I really don't know what happened beyond just bad cases of writer's block. To a very annoying point! I'm almost a month behind here. I really hope the chapter was worth the wait. And that I didn't have Sensei repeat his destiny lines a little too much. It was harder than I thought coming up with dialogue for him and I'm afraid I might have repeated myself a bit too much. What do you guys think?

Oh since this was already brought up in the reviews, and honestly I think it should be blatantly obvious by now, yes Ron's changes were inspired by the G.I. Joe's resident silent ninja/commando Snake-Eyes. The idea came to me while reading through Snake-Eyes: Declassified a couple years ago. Wow, can't believe it's been _that_ long. Anyway, it just kinda occurred to me that they're both blond, both had ninja training and both date headstrong redheads. So I just thought, "Why not have Ron go full on Snake-Eyes and burn his face off as well?" And from there the seeds for this story were planted. Though it's definitely taken me a lot longer to get here than I thought it would.

But maybe that's for the best as now I got to use that Francis Dunnery song from the "Scrubs" soundtrack. The first time I heard it I thought it really fit Ron and Kim's relationship as it stands in the MI universe now. I hope I was able to capture that well with Kim's thoughts and if you guys want to listen to it I think you can find it on YouTube. There was a _great_ Scrubs AMV to it but it was a victim YouTube's stupid rules and is gone now. Dammit.

Alright well that's all for now til next time guys. Which hopefully won't be as long.


	4. The Train Goes On

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kim Possible. She is owned by Disney and Mark McCorkle and Bob Schooley. Any original characters shown or mentioned belong to me and can not be used without permission. Got it?_

**Sidekick, No More**

**Chapter 4: The Train Goes On**

Ron let out as close to a content sigh as he could as he sank into the soothing, warm water of Yamanouchi's outside bath. He did find it was a little odd that it was outdoors and...communal but he eventually got over it. It helped that he was able to schedule his bath time around the others so he could enjoy a nice, peaceful bath all by himself. He hated to appear anti-social or worse homophobic, but he was still just a little uncomfortable being around a bunch of other naked guys. Partly do to his less than manly physic, though that was slowly changing, but mostly do to the fact that he was still self conscious about the scars on his body. While they weren't as numerous as the ones on his face he felt they still made him stand out a bit. Though he had a feeling some of the students had similar scars over their bodies.

He still wasn't ready to take that chance though. Nor was he ready to take the bandages off his face in the company of others. That was the main reason he wanted to take a bath by himself. Due to his excessive training sessions his bandages were starting to be soaked with sweat and a bit stinky. It was definitely time to change them and figured why he was doing that he might as well wash his face now that it didn't hurt so much anymore. He reached up to the back of his head and was just about to unwrap them when he heard someone else walking over to the warm pool of water.

He quickly dropped his hands and in morbid curiosity turned to see who was walking over to him. His eyes nearly bugged out of his bandages and his skull when he saw the approaching figure. It was Yori dressed in nothing by a white towel that seemed to cling to her rather voluptuous body. She smiled sweetly at him and gave a small wave as she walked over to the edge of the large bath. Ron's eyes grew even wider when he saw her reach up and start to unwrap the towel. He quickly shut his eyes then turned away from her, his face becoming even hotter from the flush of embarrassment. Yori gave him a curious look as she slowly sank into the warm, soothing water.

"Is everything alright Stoppable-San?" she asked, tilting her head a bit in confusion.

_Oh yeah sure everything's fine. I'm just sitting naked in a pool with a hot girl who's also naked but not my girlfriend who probably kill me if she found out about this! _his mind screamed.

Outwardly though he just nodded his head vigorously and hoped she would leave it at that. Or just leave soon. Unfortunately, she didn't. If anything she seemed to move closer to him.

"Are you sure? Because you seem rather...uneasy," she pressed.

_I've never wanted to be able to talk more in my life! _He cringed, trying to scrunch himself up even more.

Yori continued to stare at him, reading his body language to try to figure out what he was feeling. She quirked an eyebrow when she finally realized why he seemed so on edge.

"You...did know this was a coed bath, didn't you?" she asked curiously.

His shoulders relaxed a bit as he hung and shook his head shamefully. She quickly brought a hand up to her mouth to try to suppress an amused giggle but it did little good.

"Oh Stoppable-San, you and your American style obliviousness to the obvious," she mused. "This bath has been coed for many years. It is actually a part of our training. It is a way to show that we trust each other in even our most vulnerable state."

Ron nodded as he tried to relax a bit.

_That makes sense,_ he mulled over. _It's nothing sexual just watching out for a friend's back. Or is that _washing_ a friend's back? Well either way this really shouldn't be a problem. Right?_

His shoulders came down a bit more as the nervous tension started to melt away from his body. Unfortunately when he finally opened his eyes and titled his head towards Yori, he remembered her state of undress. Although the steam coming up from the water helped conceal most of her body but he could caught a hint of her breasts. Enough to give him a few more than friendly ideas which forced him to shut his eyes and turn his head away again.

_Okay those thoughts are more than friendly! _More than friendly!! _I gotta think of something else! Think of...Bonnie. And how mad she'd be if she found you like this! Yes it would be _very_ bad if she where here right now. Actually if it was _just _her..._

A crooked grin formed beneath his bandages as that train of thought gave him some very pleasant ideas. Unfortunately, they ended up being a bit _too_ pleasant and his body started to respond accordingly. While normally not a _bad_ sensation, he had a feeling the company he was with wouldn't really appreciate it. Or maybe she would and really that would just end up causing _more_ problems.

_Gaaaah! I'm in a no win scenario here! Where's Commander Kane when I need him?!_ His inner voice screamed.

Yori continued to watch Ron with a curious fascination. While there were many cultural differences between them, she was able to read body language fairly well and even if she couldn't see his face she had an idea of what all his fidgeting about meant. A small blush flared on her cheeks as she forced herself to keep her eyes above the water. She scooted away from him and leaned back against the edge of the bath then pulled her legs up to her chest and lead her head on her knees as she tried to think of a subject that would ease the tension.

"You are doing very well in your training," she complimented softly. "You have improved more in three weeks here than most students do in three months. It is quite impressive."

Ron nodded as the mulled the information over. He _thought_ he had been making some progress but he didn't realize he was doing _that_ well. Of course he knew it was mostly do to the Mystic Monkey Power, which felt a bit like cheating to him. Still he was there to improve his skills and that _was_ part of skills whether he liked it or not. Even if he did just get them in a freak accident. Sensei kept saying it was "destiny" but he still wasn't quite convinced.

_Well I guess there's really nothing I can do about it now than what I've already been doing. Learn to accept them and use them to improve myself so I can stand next to Kim and Shego,_ he mused. _Sensei's mental training is helping a lot, I'm at least through the monkey mouth but I'm pretty sure I still have a long way to do. _He then shuddered. _And I _never _want to think the phrase "through the monkey mouth" again._

He was brought out of his reprieve by the feeling of a soft, warm hand laying gently on his shoulder. It was then he remember he wasn't alone and just _who_ was sitting next to him. He cautioned a glance over his shoulder to Yori and fought his natural inclination to have his eyes dart downward. Instead he focused his stare on her dark eyes and did his best to keep it there. Any impure thoughts he may have had though were washed away the second he saw the nervous look in her eyes.

Ron always prided himself on being there for his friends to offer as good advice as he could or just be a shoulder for them to cry on. From the way Yori was looking at him he could tell she needed him in the shoulder crying capacity. So with that in mind he was able to keep his focus on her troubled face rather than the other parts of her body. He turned to face her to show he was ready to give her his full attention. She nodded in understanding of this action then closed her eyes and took in a deep breath to calm her nerves. She let it out slowly and opened her eyes to look back into his.

"Stop-" she paused and chided herself on still being so formal. "Ron-San, while I am happy that you decided to continue your training here, there is another reason I am excited you returned. If you remember from the last time we met when I left I..." she turned her eyes away as she blushed slightly, "...kissed you."

Ron nodded. He certainly _did_ remember that little incident. Quite well. Course he also remembered the look on Kim's face and some of her subsequent rants against Yori once they started dating.

_And _that_ is one of the reasons I haven't told Bonnie about that little peck on the cheek yet,_ he thought .

He pushed the thought back so he could continued to focus on Yori and the confession he knew was coming.

"I know it was rather improper of me," she continued, "but I found I could not help myself. You see when you first came here I quickly grew...attracted to you. I did not mean to do so but you were so...different from the others here. Please don't take that the wrong way, I care very much for the others here. They are my friends and family and I would gladly lay down my life for them."

She then paused and looked away from him, as if she were ashamed to admit the next part.

"But...because we have all been taught in the same disciplines, a lot of the students here are very...similar," she revealed before a look of embarrassment crossed her face. "Do not get the wrong impression, everyone here does have their own unique quirks and personalities, I simply never found them very...appealing."

She was quiet for a moment as she just stared down into the water, like her own reflection was judging her for what she had just said. It passed quickly enough though and her eyes brightened once again when she lifted her head up to look at Ron.

"But then you came here and you were so...different. You had such an exuberance about you. Not to mention your American style sense of humor. It was a refreshing change from the other students here that I couldn't help but become attracted to you. I tried to suppress my feelings because I knew you would only be staying a limited time at Yamanouchi and that I was most likely not see you again. I thought I _had_ suppressed those feelings after you left but when Gorilla Fist brought us back together those feelings returned and as I said before I could not help myself."

A small smile slowly spread across her face as she scooted just a bit closer to him.

"Now that you have returned, though, I was wondering...if...perhaps..." she stammered a bit, which was a rarity for her. "I understand it would be difficult given how far we live from one another and I would never ask you to leave your friends and family but with today's technology it is much easier to keep in contact with each other so I would not have to. Plus I am for the most part done with my training here at Yamanouchi so in all honesty it really _is_ time for me to move on so I _could_ return with you to America."

She paused when she realized how presumptuous that sounded and immediately covered her mouth with her hand and looked away in embarrassment. After a few seconds of awkward silence she hazard another glance at him.

"That is...of course if you would _want_ me too. I certainly wouldn't want to impose," she tried to correct herself. "I simply meant to inquire...if you would like that is...perhaps we could..."

Ron quickly held up a hand to stop her. When he did, he saw exactly what he knew he was going to see but really hoped he wouldn't. There was a glint in her eyes. One he had no doubt had in his eyes countless times before. The glint of hope. The hope that someone you have feelings for will return those feelings. _That_ he had definitely felt before. Worse yet he felt the heartbreak of having those feelings rejected. Course he was used to always being on the receiving end so now that he was on the other side he really wasn't sure how to proceed. He had heard many of the speeches before but no matter how softly and gentled they were delivered, the words always sounds harsh and painful. So he had to be careful with what he said so he wouldn't hurt Yori as much as he had been hurt. Worse yet he had to convey this message without actually being able to talk!

_You know, you'd think getting my face blown off and losing my voice would be enough punishment for one life time but noooooo!! What does the world have against me?!_ Ron wailed mentally.

On the outside he scratched the back of his neck and fidgeted around nervously as he tried to figure out how to convey what he wanted to tell her. He looked around desperately for something, _anything_, he could use to write her a note or something.

_Of all the times to forget my stupid note pad,_ he chided himself.

Yori watched with a heavy heart as Ron twitched about nervously. Even without her highly honed skills to read body language she could tell something was bothering him. Something she feared she had known a long time before she even thought of trying this risky gambit. It was why she was so afraid to voice her feelings but she couldn't stay quiet any longer. She had to know one way or another so she could move on. Still to be faced with faced with the very thing she feared was a bit...unsettling.

"You...already have someone in your life, correct?" she asked, as she held her shoulders and shrank away a bit.

Ron's eyes widened in surprise and horror at the fact that she figured it out so quickly. He then closed them as he nodded, lacking the courage to look at her as he broke her heart. She nodded with him, a sudden chill running through her body despite the warm water they sat in. She forced herself to look at him again as she asked the next question she already knew the answer to.

"It is Possible-San isn't it?"

His eyes snapped back open at that statement. Now _that_ was a question he really wished he could actually tell her given how much back story was involved with it. Failing that though, he did the only think he could think of; the world's worst and most depressing game of charades. He held up his right hand to give her attention then mimicked the motions of reading through a book. After a few seconds of that he acted like he was pulling a piece of string or taffy with his hands. Yori quirked an eyebrow as she tried to make sense of these strange motions.

"It is...a long story?" she guessed.

Ron nodded vigorously and gave her two thumbs up. She smiled a bit in self congratulations at having quickly picked up his meaning. It lasted only a second though as she realized that answer still didn't bode well for her. Nevertheless she trudged on.

"So you are _not_ going out with Possible-San right now then?" she asked.

He nodded.

That cold feeling returned as she readied her next question.

"But...you _still_ have someone else, yes?"

Again his eyes closed a bit as he nodded slowly. He forced himself to watch her to see how badly he had hurt her and if there was anything he could do to comfort her. Her ninja training must have kicked in though because he barely saw the expression on her face change at all. If anything it went rather neutral a few seconds after he had delivered the news. While her face, and even her body, remained stoic, he could see the small glint in eye that told him he had just completely devastated her. He tried to move forward to comfort her but she held a hand out to stop him.

"Thank you for your honesty, Stoppable-San," she said her voice surprisingly level. "I am sorry to have troubled you with my problems and I will speak of them no more. Now if you will excuse me I believe I have other matters to attend to."

With that, she practically leapt out of the large bath, splashing water around and completely exposing her well shaped body. Ron screamed inwardly in shock then closed his eyes and turned away. When he opened them again, he noticed both Yori and her towel where gone. He was about to stand up and run after her but a quick bout of dizziness due to the steam, and perhaps a bit of blood loss from the brain, sent him crashing down into the warm water. He coughed a bit as he pulled himself up and struggled to the edge of the bath.

_Well, I really messed _that_ up! _he scolded himself with a slight sigh.

Elsewhere in the school, those students who were still wandering around the courtyard and the halls were surprised to see one of their most highly decorated and honored classmates running through the halls in only a pink towel wrapped around her. Water traveled after Yori as she ran as fast as she could to her room. She would have been a little more embarrassed at her classmates gawking had she really paid that much attention to them. Instead she was focusing more on putting as much distance between herself and Ron as fast as she could. She wouldn't _dare_ let him see what his revelation had done to her. Not only would it be vastly embarrassing for her it would give him unwanted guilt she he simply didn't need to deal with right now. It stupid and selfish of her to even bring the topic up.

When she reached her door, she slid it open as quickly and forcibly as she could then bolted inside before she slammed it shut again. Her breath came in ragged gasps as she leaned against it and slowly started to slide down it until she was sitting in a crouched position on the floor. Again she hugged her knees to her chest as she panted and the water and sweat ran down her face. There was so much dampness on her face that she failed to realize that some of it was coming from her slightly reddened eyes. She sniffed a few times as she replayed the events in her head. It really _was _stupid of her to admit her feelings to him. As much as she _wanted_ it to be different it seemed that she and Ron were destined to be with other people. And as Sensei also taught them, was something to be embraced.

"But that does not mean I have to _like_ it," she muttered bitterly as she laid her head against the door.

She closed her eyes and despite all the training she had had over the years in strength and discipline and willpower she found there was only one thing she could at the moment to make her feeling any better; cry.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The next morning, after a rather restless night's sleep and a fresh change of bandages, Ron walked into one of the school's many dojos for his next sparring session with Yori. When he spotted her standing in the middle of the room's padded circle he would tell that something was...off. He had a sneaking suspicion he know what that was but he pushed the thought aside and put on a cheerful face. Or at least he did so under his bandages. To help convey his sentiment he gave her a friendly wave as he stopped just in front of her. She simply placed her hands in front of her and bowed in return before she immediately took a fighting stance. He was a bit surprised by this reaction but his newly honed instincts quickly took over and he took a fighting stance of his own.

He barely registered that she moved forward when he saw the closed fisting coming at him. He crossed his arms in front of his face to block it then lashed out with a backhanded fist. She caught it easily then twisted around so her back was pressing against him, allowing her the perfect vantage point to flip him over her shoulder. As he spun through the air, Ron controlled his descent enough to land on his feet but not enough to keep his balance. He fell onto the mat with a dull "thud" and before he could recover he saw Yori about to bring another fist down on him. He rolled out of the way then tried for a leg sweep which she easily jumped over. He used the small break to spring back up to his feet and ready himself for her next attack.

The session continued on like that for half an hour, with each combatant trading and blocking the other's blows. It was a pattern Ron had become familiar with now and he was getting really good at reading Yori's body language in preparation for her next strike. It was this new found ability to helped him realize that something _was_ wrong with her. Her blows were a lot harder than they had been in past and filled with a kind of....anger he had never seen in her before. Her whole body was tense but instead of tripping her up it just seemed to make her attacks that much faster. He ducked a high sweeping kick that would have taken his head if it had connected, which is probably would have a few weeks ago. He struck back with a quick uppercut that she leaned back to avoid. That was the real danger of the situation. Despite how much he had improved over the weeks, she had _years_ of experience on her side. That put him at a _severe _disadvantage. At some point the exercise went from a training session to simple self defense. He just hoped he would find a way to reach Yori before she did something they would _both_ regret. Though he had a feeling _he'd_ regret it more.

Unfortunately, that small moment of thought caused him to lower his defensives enough that Yori's latest kick connected directly to his stomach. The blow knocked the wind out of him and sent him stumbling backwards. It took all his strength to keep standing even as he bent over and fell into a coughing fit, his own hot breath stinging his eyes. Through his blurry, tear soaked vision he saw Yori take a few steps forward with her fist cocked back to deliver the finishing blow. He was still too winded from the kick to even try to a counter move so instead he just closed his eyes and waited for the hit the come.

It was a _much_ longer wait than he thought. In fact he wasn't totally sure he hadn't already been hit and was just knocked into dreamland. Though things seemed far too real for that. When he realized he was still awake he cautiously opened one eye to see Yori's outstretched fist just half an inch away from his face. He looked beyond it to see her face which lost the blank, almost emotionless, expression she wore during the most of their training session. Now her bottom lip was trembling a bit as her own eyes watered up at the corners as she looked regretful. She slowly lowered her now shaking fist as she took a deep breath to try to calm her nerves. Ron stood straight up as well, his breath now returned to him as the pain in his stomach subsided a bit. He had little time to think about that, however, as Yori suddenly flung herself towards him and wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. He was quite surprised by this sudden change in attitude but he still brought his arms up and wrapped them around her so return the hug in comforting manner.

"I am so sorry," she sobbed into his bandaged ear. "I have...dishonored myself and you."

It was a surprising statement. He knew how important honor was to her and all the other students here at Yamanouchi so to say something like _that_ she had to be feeling pretty miserable. He tightened his grip on her as she shook his head.

"It is true," she countered, feeling the movement of his head. "I should never have revealed my feelings to you last night. It was a selfish acted that only shamed myself and may you uncomfortable. You came here to continue your training, not to have me, how do you Americans say...throw myself at you. Especially since I already suspected you had someone special in your life. I was simply indulging in a fantasy that will never come true. For that I am truly sorry."

She tightened her arms to deepen the hug for a bit then slipped out of his grasp and walked over to the other side of the dojo,her head bowed and staring at the floor in shame. Ron's fists tightened a bit in annoyance as he watched her shamble around in such a state. This time he was prepared, however, and he quickly produced a small note pad and pencil from his pocket. He quickly scribbled something down then tore a page out and walked over to her to place it in her hand. Yori gave him a quizzical look then inspected the small piece of paper.

"You don't need to be sorry, it's not your fault," it read.

She offered him a small smile even as she shook her head.

"It _is_ my fault," she insisted. "I have been taught to put my own personal feelings behind the best interest of the school and the students. Right now, training you to master your Mystical Monkey Powers is in the best interest of the school and yourself. It was not my place to put that training in danger because of my own feelings."

Ron stared at her for a moment before he wrote something else and handed her another page.

"Then maybe that's why you did it, because you couldn't hold it in anymore."

"That is _exactly_ why I did it," she agreed. "But I am saying that it was wrong and I never _should_ have done it. Therefore I have dishonored myself."

He let out a soft sigh from behind his bandages then wrote up another note.

"You know, you remind me a lot of KP."

Yori blinked and looked up at him in confusion. He quickly handed her another piece of paper with simply read:

"Kim Possible."

"Oh," she nodded in understanding then smiled a bit. "Do you mean that?"

"Yes because you're both too stubborn to admit you're wrong," another note read.

She flashed him an annoyed and insulted look. He held up a finger to keep her quite then quickly wrote something else down.

"I mean that you're wrong about this whole "dishonor" thing. You made a mistake and that's human. It happens. It happens to me. Quite a lot."

Despite her current mood, Yori couldn't help but giggle at that remark. She was handed another note before she could speak again.

"And honestly I'm flattered and if I wasn't already going out with Bonnie I'd totally go out with you," he "said".

A hopeful look flashed across her face.

"Do you really mean that?" she asked brightly.

He nodded and gave a thumbs up. He suddenly stopped when a horrible thought occurred to him. He wrote down another note and quickly gave it to her.

"Now that I said that you're not going to try to kill Bonnie or anything, are you?"

Again she laughed and shook her head.

"Well first I would have to know who this 'Bonnie' person is," she explained. "And secondly I would never willing do something to hurt you. I may not be able to be with you in that manner but I still care deeply for you and I only wish to see that you are happy."

Ron smiled happily behind his bandages before he handed her another piece of paper.

"And now you're me," it read.

The confused expression crossed her face again. If he could have chuckled he would have. Instead he relayed another note.

"I said the same thing to KP when she started dating Shego."

The note didn't help clear up Yori's confusion.

"She is dating...Shego? The criminal?" she asked with a quirked eyebrow.

Ron nodded and was about to write something else but she held up a hand full of the crumpled notes.

"I have a feeling that to explain it all properly you would need far more pages than that small notebook supplies," she remarked.

He bobbed his head from side to side as he thought it over and then nodded again.

"I thought as much. Perhaps I can offer you another way to communicate that wouldn't produce so much..." she paused as she looked at all the pages in her hands, "waste."

Though she couldn't see it, he was giving her a confused look of his own. She giggled a bit then wiggled a finger as sign for him to follow her, which he did. They walked over to another part of the dojo where a small backpack sat on the floor. She knelt down unzip it then quickly produced what looked to be a textbook. Ron instinctually cringed at the site of it but once it passed, he took a closer look at the cover and was surprised to see it read:

**Sign Language 101 **

He blinked a few times then looked over at Yori's beaming face.

"I had this specially ordered once you explained why you were returning," she explained. "It is written in English so you should be able to understand it. I have a few more volumes in here once you have mastered the basics."

Ron raised a finger like he was going to say something but realized he couldn't. Even if he could Yori would have cut him off.

"Consider it another part of your training," she said as she sat cross legged on the floor and patted the spot next to her to indicate that he should sit down.

With a shrug, he did just that and made himself as comfortable as he could on the hardwood floor of he dojo. He peered over her shoulder as she cracked open the book. Inside there were pictures of hands in various positions with phrases underneath them. It all looked a bit overwhelming for him and reminded him a bit _too_ much of school, but at the very least Yori made a much better looking teacher than Mr. Barkin ever did. He smiled a bit as he looked over at her.

"Now then, we shall start with the simple signs first," she instructed.

She noticed him look at her and smiled slightly as a small blush crossed her cheeks.

"Before we begin I wish to say thank you," she said almost sheepishly. "For cheering me up and for comparing myself to you. To be honest if there was anyone I was to be compared to I could think of no one better."

He stared blankly at her for several seconds. Despite her earlier request he couldn't help but write up another note.

"Okay now I know that's the first time anyone's ever said **THAT**!!" it read.

She giggled again as she read it.

"Oh Ron-San, always with your American style sense of humor," she mused with a shake of her head. "Now let us begin...."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ron stood perfectly still as he faced his oldest, and perhaps most frightening, foe of all: the Camp Wannaweep monkey mascot. Oh how he _hated_ that monkey. He had to spend week after torturous week living with that beast and couldn't get a moment's peace because of it. Most say that's where his irrational fear of monkeys came from but her preferred to think that's where he learned the truth about their nefarious nature. It showed them just how evil and traitorous they could be. It still gave him nightmares to this day.

"Funny though, I always remembered him as being bigger," he said to himself. "Course maybe that's cause I was just a little kid."

He shrugged the looked back at the chimp wearing the camp's T-shirt and a raccoon skin cap. It howled and flailed about on the other end of the cabin, as if it challenged him to make a move. _That_ part was exactly how he had remembered it. It would stand there and make a racket all day while he stood pressed up against the other end of the cabin, too afraid to even wet himself. It was just one of the many horrible, _horrible_ experiences he had at Wannaweep that scarred him for life.

But that's exactly why he was here. In his weeks of training with Sensei on the astral plane, and in his own mind, he had learned to overcome most of his fears. He had long ago passed through the giant "space monkey's" mouth and began to go deep in his own psyche. It was all a bit too psychobabble for him to really understand, but he did know that conquering through all his old Wannaweep fears one by one actually _was_ helping his confidence grow. It seemed literally coming face-to-face with the things that scared him helped him beat them back.

And now he was facing down the biggest one of all.

He clenched his fists up and took a few deep breaths to calm his nerves. Rationally, he knew this was all in his mind and that the monkey wasn't really there and couldn't really hurt him. Of course, no one would ever mistake Ron for being rational. He usually let his imagination run wild with him but in here that wasn't a good thing. He had to control it. Control his fears, his doubts, his insecurities, all of it. He had beaten the rest of them and now all he had to do was beat that damn monkey.

"No wait," he remarked with a shake of his head. "That doesn't sound right at all. Anyway, time to get this done."

With that he marched bravely forward and shot his arms forward to quickly snatch the moneky's flailing arms wrists then yank it up so he could stare it right in the beady little eyes.

"I am not scared of you anymore!" he shouted with as much bravado as he could muster. "I'm not scared and you can't hurt me!"

As if to challenge that statement, the monkey suddenly brought it's legs up to shove it's feet into Ron's face and push him away. He let out a surprised scream and dropped the monkey as he stumbled backwards. Once he regained his footing he glared at his furry foe.

"Man, why do all my fears _always_ want to do things the hard way?!" he exclaimed as he tossed his hands in the air. He sighed and refocused. "Alright monkey, we're not leaving here until one of us is gone! And I'm pretty sure it's going to be you!"

The Wannaweep monkey let out an enraged shriek and flailed its arms again before it lunged at Ron. Instead of screaming and cringing in fear, the blond boy simply planted his feet firmly on the wooden floorboards and readied himself. Once the raging simian was within range, Ron thrust out his hand in an open palmed attack that struck the monkey in its small, hairy chest and sent it flying back towards the cabin's door. It let out a small grunt of pain as it bounced off the wooden door then fell to the floor. It pulled itself up and wobbled around a bit as it tried to recover from the blow.

"You know I'm actually surprisingly sorry I had to do that," Ron said softly to it. "But if you keep being a pest I'm gonna have to do this. So whattya say, give up easily?"

The monkey glared at him before it leapt again. Ron sighed and slumped his shoulders a bit.

"Always the hard way," he muttered again before he prepared himself.

The fight was much more difficult than Ron had expected. Of course he wasn't sure why exactly he _expected_ it to be easy considering all the challenges overcoming his other fears presented. Still this one was more than a little persistent. Much like the real Camp Wannaweep monkey had been. Their fight raged all over the small cabin room, destroying the bunk beds, breaking the lambs, shattering the mirror, and splitting the dresser in half. Even if it _was_ all in his mind Ron still couldn't understand how _that_ happened.

After what felt like hours, the struggle finally came to a rather abrupt and unceremonious stop when Ron side-stepped one of the mad monkey's lunges and it smashed its head against the wall. He blinked as he watched it hit the floor with a small bounce then let out a small groan as it twitched slightly. He continued to stare in disbelief for a few seconds.

"That's it?" he asked incredulously. "After all that fighting and all that time improving my mad ninja skills I beat my greatest fear with just...dumb luck?!"

"It would appear so," Sensei's voice called out in amusement.

Ron turned his attention to the door where he heard the voice just in time to see Sensei shimmering into view. Although he couldn't see the old ninja master's mouth behind his long, grey whiskers, Ron could tell he was smirking at him. His suspicion was only confirmed when he heard Sensei chuckling a bit. His brow narrowed a bit in annoyance as he walked over to him.

"Although I believe you called it 'dumb skill' if I'm not mistaken," Sensei remarked.

"Well of course I _called_ it that! It was just to cover up it was dumb luck! It's like when people say they meant to do that even though they obviously didn't," Ron clarified.

"But in your case it is true."

A confused look crossed the blond's face as he tried to process that statement.

"I don't get it," he confessed with a shake of his head.

Sensei chuckled again. "It is your method."

"My 'method'?"

"Yes," he nodded wisely. "You see although we teach our students all the same style here, the method in which they chose to use that style is as unique as each of them. Like a fingerprint, which fighting method is different for each person. For instance, although you are learning Tai Shing Pek Kwar the way in which you use it will be different from how Monkey Fist uses it. That is how masters are born. They find a way to employ the style that will trump others of the same style. Do you understand?"

"I think so," Ron replied. "It's like how Kim knows all those different styles of kung-fu and can kick mucho butt with them on people who know everything about them, right?"

"Something like that, yes."

"Cool," the blond smirked then looked around the wrecked cabin. "So...this is it, right? I beat my greatest fear and now I'm ready to move on to something else in this whole mystical, mind training."

"You are ready to move on, yes but you have not defeated your _greatest_ fear," Sensei said rather ominously.

Ron stared nervously at the old ninja master for a few seconds, a feeling deep dread starting to flow over his body. He was _sure_ the monkey would his last fear. After all that thing tormented him when he was young and haunted his nightmares ever since then. So really what else was left to be afraid of?

"The answer lays just beyond that door," Sensei said, pointing to the plain, wooden door of the cabin.

"Hey did you just read my mind?!" Ron exclaimed in an accusatory manner.

"We are already in the mind, so technically I am reading your mind with everything you say," he remarked with a hint of mischievousness.

"Yeah...I guess that's true," the blond mumbled then looked at the door. "So really...what's on the other side of that thing?"

"Pass through and find out."

Ron stared at him for a few seconds longer then sighed and slumped his shoulders.

"Alright fine I get it, hero's journey and all that," he remarked as he walked up to the door.

Hesitantly, he reached out and grabbed the doorknob. He took a few deep breaths to summon up his courage then twisted the knob and flung the door open was quickly as he could. A blindingly bright, white light filled his vision for a moment and when it finally passed he found himself standing in a very familiar room. One he actually hadn't been in for quite awhile as the person who used to live there moved out many months ago. And yet here he was. More importantly, there _she_ was. Standing in the middle of the room and looking at him with those bright green eyes and friendly smile he had seen a thousand times before. For a moment it seemed just like old times, but he remembered all too quickly that this was just an illusion created by his mind.

Still he couldn't believe his greatest fear was:

"Kim," Ron whispered in disbelief.

"Yeah Ron?" she asked cheerfully.

"Wait, you can hear me?!"

She gave him an odd look. "Yeah, why wouldn't I be able to?"

"Oh right, yeah I guess that monkey could hear me so it make sense you could too," he muttered under his breath.

"Ron are you sure you're alright?" the redhead asked in concern.

"Actually no," he confessed as he sat down on the edge of the bed.

Kim moved over to the bed and sat down next to him then placed a comforting arm on his shoulder.

"Ron you know if you need anything I'll be there to help, right?" she asked him.

"Yeah I do KP and I've always appreciated it," he remarked as he laid his head on his hands.

"No big."

"No, it's a _very_ big. You've always been there for me. Helping me out with school work, trying to help me work up my courage to talk to girls, bailing me out whenever I got into trouble on our missions, saving me from countless henchmen and robots and stuff and...and..." he paused and lifted his head up as his face took on a look of complete clarity. "And I can't do it anymore."

Kim blinked and looked at him in confusion. "What?"

"Yeah I get it!" he exclaimed, completely ignoring her as he stood up. "Yeah this _is_ my greatest fear! I totally get it now!"

"Ron, you're starting to scare me here," Kim said nervously as she looked up at him.

The smile disappeared from his face as Ron realized what he had to do. Even with an imaginary Kim this was going to be hard to do, but it _had_ to be done. He took a deep breath then look down at the redhead he known practically his whole life. He reached a hand down to her and with a questioning look on her face, she placed her hand in his. He helped her to her feet before he took her other hand into his so he could look her in the eyes as he talked to her.

"Kim," he started, almost sorrowfully. "You've been my best friend my whole life and you've done some wonderful things for me. Heck you even dated me for awhile and while it ended kinda awkweirdly it was still one of the happiest times of my life and I wouldn't trade it for anything."

"Why do I sense there's a 'but' coming up?" Kim remarked with a sad smile.

"_But_," he stressed as he smirked back at her. "You also set an impossibly high standard. I mean, do you have any idea what it's like being next to you on a mission? To watch you out there kicking bad guy butt while I'm stuck either being the distraction or just running away screaming from everyone? Heck even _Rufus_ has done more to help than I have."

"Ron that's not true!" she protested.

"Kim, just-just let me finish," he requested.

Although it was obvious she wanted to say more, she respected his wishes and merely nodded for him to continue.

"I use to wonder why people couldn't remember my name," he started up again with a slight sigh. "But really I've always kinda known the answer. It's because next to you I'm just completely invisible. Most people would be. I mean, you're amazing! But...that also makes it hard to stand next to you rather than just...in your shadow."

He tilted his head away in shame of what he just said. He wasn't proud that he said it, but it was something that had been eating away at him for awhile now. Still he wasn't sure he could look her in the eye for awhile, even if she _was_ a figment of his imagination.

To her credit though, Kim smiled softly as she pulled one of her hands free from his so she could bring it up to turn his head back around to look at her.

"Ron, you're _not_ in my shadow," she insisted.

"Yes I _am_ Kim!" he practically screamed as he tore himself away from her.

He walked a few steps away then turned to face her again, a look of indignation on his face.

"I've _always_ been in your shadow! I've always been 'just the sidekick' or 'the buffoon' or 'that guy with Kim Possible'. You keep telling me how I have all this potential I need to live up to but I haven't because you never gave me the chance!"

That did it. Kim's face went from concerned and caring to annoyed and ticked off in the blink of an eye. Her brow furrowed, her teeth ground together and her hands clenched up into fists as she glared daggers into Ron.

"Oh so it's _my_ fault now?!" she cried out. "All I've _ever_ done is try to help you get over all your irrational fears so you'll be a better, stronger person! And _this_ is the thanks I get?!"

"I _know_ you tried to help me, but it wasn't so I'd be better it's so _you'd_ look better!" he retorted.

Kim stammered a bit in shock. "Th-that's not true!"

"Oh really?" he asked, crossing his arms over his chest. "Then what was with that new haircut from a few years back. That definitely wasn't _my_ idea, I liked my hair the way it was. _You_ were the one who wanted to change it."

"Hey, _you_ liked that hair style after awhile!" she countered.

"And when I did and I started acting just a bit more confident, you got all insecure and got me to change it back."

"A _little_ confident?!" Kim scoffed. "You so full of yourself you had to turn sideways to fit through doorways. And that's what _always_ happens when you get just a little bit ahead. You always let it go to your head and act like God's gift to the world."

"Well did you ever stop to think that maybe I acted that way because I usually _don't_ get any kind of break in life?!" Ron shouted, his voice cracking just a bit.

Kim's expression fell as she took in that statement. This time it was her turn to lower her face and turn away in shame. She hung her head and brought up her right arm to hug and rub her left on as she dug her feet into the carpet a bit.

"No. I never actually thought of that," she said sheepishly.

"Kinda figured that. And I admit I kinda got out of control those times, so it's mostly my fault," he confessed. "I know you were just looking out for me KP and I really _do_ appreciate that. But you can't keep doing that all the time. I'm not some helpless little kid being picked on by bullies anymore or some frantic sidekick flailing about. Well...okay maybe I _was_ that last one for awhile there but I'm changing that!"

"And I respect that Ron, that's all I've ever really wanted for you," Kim said as she took a few steps closer.

"I know, but I just couldn't do that with you around. I know you'd try to help me but..." he stopped as the words caught in this throat.

"But what?" she asked nervously.

"I'm...I'm...not sure if you'd be sincere about it. I know you like being in the spotlight, and that's totally where you belong, but I just want to be able to share it with you. I'm just not sure you'd feel the same way."

"Ron of course I would!" she tried to convince him.

"Yeah, maybe now, after...Shego," he growled. "Because...well being Shego, she kind of forced her way into it with you. I mean I'm sure having Shin and being around someone else that was just as strong willed as you helped, but let's be honest, this _is_ Shego we're talking about here."

"Yeah," Kim chuckled and smiled happily. It was quickly replaced by another frown though. "But that's _not_ why I'd share the spotlight with you. I'd do that because I care about you. You're my best friend."

"And you're my best friend. That was _never_ in question. I just needed to get away from awhile and do this on my own," he said then thought about that last comment. "Well more or less. The point is I'm just trying to get better so that I'm not a sidekick anymore and instead a partner to you. I just wasn't sure if you'd get that."

"Oh Ron," she sighed then stepped forward to give him a comforting hug. "Of course I understand that. I'm just not too happy about it."

"I know," he muttered as he returned the hug. "But I promise I'll come back to you. It just may take me some time."

"Just don't take too long."

"I won't," he whispered as he held her tighter. "I promise."

He closed his eyes and rested his head on her shoulder as he relaxed into the embrace. He let out a soft, content sigh as a warm feeling washed over his body. It was a feeling that told him everything was going to be alright. That this would all work out in the end and that no matter what, Kim would always be there for him.

When he reopened his eyes he found himself back in the candle lit shrine where he trained with Sensei, who was sitting cross legged next to him. Ron blinked a few time as he readjusted to being in the real world. He slowly stood up, letting his muscles ease their way back into working. After a few stretches to work out the kinks he looked over at Sensei, who was already standing.

"That will be all for today Stoppable-San," he said. "You have made great progress today. Now, go with my blessing and enjoy the rest of the day."

Ron nodded then placed his hands in front of him to give a respectful bow to his master. He then walked outside, his legs still a little wobbly from being crossed for so long. When he made it outside he saw Sensei's remark of enjoying the "day" was a little generous as the sun was just starting to set. As he watched it slowly sink between the high mountains surrounding the school, he thought over what had just happened in his mind.

_So that was my greatest fear,_ he thought in disbelief. _Just tell Kim how I really felt. Well...I guess it _was_ pretty terrifying and I _do_ feel better getting it out, so to speak. Still I wonder if even after all this training I'll ever have the courage to actually tell her all that stuff in real life?_

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Ron kept his breathing slow and steady as he sat on the nearly frozen ground. He watched as snow gently fell all around him, coating the school grounds, the trees and even the mountains in a soft white blanket. It gave everything a serene, peaceful look that only helped him keep his restful state of mind. It was in that state of mind that he was able to keep up the soft, glowing blue aura around his body that kept the bitter winter cold away from his body. While the other students had donned their coats and other protective gear to keep them warm during their winter training sessions, he only switched out his bandages for one of their normal masks. That was simply because he had finally run out of medical gauze and despite being in the school for four months now was still not ready to let them see his face.

_Four months. Has it really been that long?_ He asked himself. _Really doesn't seem like that. But I guess time flies when you're having fun. Or trying to master an ancient ninja mystical force that was accidently transferred into your body. Either way, time goes by quickly._

Even with this cheerful attitude, Ron couldn't help but feel a little down that he was so far away from home at this time of the year. Though he hadn't seen a calendar for awhile he was relatively sure it was Christmas back home. That was really what he regretted the most about his self imposed exile, missing Christmas with Kim and especially Bonnie. It was going to be their first one together as a couple and he had actually looked forward to it. Of course he never expected to have his face blown off before then either. Still he knew he was going to have to find away to make it up to her and Kim next year.

At least his trek had not been for nothing. He had learned quite a lot in his relatively short time here and Yori and Sensei were quick to remind him of that. He still didn't quite feel like the Mystical Monkey Master that they told him he would be, but he definitely had better control over it now than he did before. It was, in fact, those same powers that allowed him to stay out in the cold without the need for heavier clothes. He found if he concentrated hard enough, the blue aura that surrounded him whenever he tapped into the power could not only act as a shield from the cold but keep him as warm as he wanted to be. Right now the weather felt to him like a nice and breezy seventy-two degrees. It was a rather unique experience and would save him a bundle on winter clothes when he finally did get home.

Of course for now this ability only worked if he concentrated on it, so when he felt a slight tap on his right shoulder it brought him out of his slight daze and the bitter winter wind brought him back to reality. He shivered a bit but thankfully the person next to him was quick to over him a long, heavy black coat. He wrapped it around himself as fast as he could then focused on Yori's smiling face and signed:

"Thank you."

"It is, how you say, no big deal," she replied cheerfully. "I also brought you this."

She then reached into her own long coat and produced a small, metal thermos. She unscrewed the lid and poured a bit of steamy, light brown liquid into it.

"I thought perhaps some hot chocolate might help you warm up," she explained as she handed him the cup.

He thanked her again as he took it. He turned away from her and lifted up his mask enough to he could take a few careful sips and enjoy the feeling of being warmed from the inside out. After a few more sips he pulled his mask back down and handed the cup back to her.

"Are you sure you do not want any more?" she offered.

He simply held up a hand and shook his head.

"Then perhaps we should head into where it is warmer. Your control of the Mystical Monkey Power has grown substantially since you arrived here, but even you cannot stand to be out here all night. I'm sure you'd agree a warm room is much better than a mystical shield."

Ron nodded vigorously and Yori chuckled at him before they both turned and started to walk towards the personal quarters of the school.

Unbeknownst to them and the other students and teachers, they were all being watched from several yards just outside Yamanouchi. A small collection of hooded figures crawled along the small rocks and hills overlooking the school, shrouded in shadows to avoid detection. Their leader sat crouched behind a rock outcropping, staring through a pair of night vision binoculars to carefully watch the two figures walk inside. Once they were gone he lowered the device in amazement.

"I never thought _he_ would be there," he growled spitefully. "But this actually works to my advantage. Now I can have my revenge on _all_ my enemies."

**To Be Concluded...**

**Author's Notes: **Well FINALLY this chapter is finished! Finally after, what? Two months or so I get this friggin thing written. Sorry for the massive delay folks, I really don't know what happened. I'm pretty sure it was a combination of my summer schedule at work which has me on evening shifts as well as spilttng my creative energies between this chapter here and my video projects over on my YouTube account. Which if anyone wants to see can be found here:

http:// www. youtube. com/user/ Blackbird26155

Just fill in the gaps and it should work. As always feedback is always appreciated even on the videos. Especially on them.

So enough shilling, I need to correct something from last chapter. As you can see that was _not_ the end of this story I was just tired and accidently wrote "The End" instead of "To Be Continued...." that has since been corrected. Now the next chapter _should_ be the end of the fic and there will be an epilogue after that. Hopefully it won't take me nearly as long as this one did and again I apologize for that.

Before I end my ranting I want to say a big thanks to my friend Slyrr who came up with the title for this chapter because I simply couldn't think of one. I think it's a fun little pun that helps lighten up a pretty heavily emotional chapter. I know it's a lot but there was stuff that needed to be done.

I also know I went through Ron's training pretty quickly but that's because what I had in mind to show his progression was a montage and well...you can't really pull that off in writing like you can in TV and movies. Again I know there's a lot of stuff left out but I think I touched on the most important stuff. Plus I can always go back and fill in the gaps in future "Spotlight" chapters so there's that. Hopefully this doesn't feel like too much of a cheat though.

Alright I'm done rambling, thanks for reading and I'll see you next time! Which will hopefully be sooner rather than later.


	5. Journey's End

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kim Possible. She is owned by Disney and Mark McCorkle and Bob Schooley. Any original characters shown or mentioned belong to me and can not be used without permission. Got it?_

**Sidekick, No More**

**Chapter 5: Journey's End**

The courtyard of the Yamanouchi school is used to silence. Being that it is a school for ninjas, stealth is always the number one priority in their lessons. Even their most rigorous exercises produced little more than a whisper. Their every move and action were all tailor made to produce almost no sound at all. They were simply to do the task assigned to them and then vanish like a specter.

As quiet as the school was during the day, it was almost deathly silent as night. Only the sounds of nature filled the courtyard while the students slept. Being that it was the middle of winter, though, most of the animals had left for warmer climates and so the courtyard lay as quiet as a tomb.

In certain places it even felt like one because despite the strength of the stone walls, they were unable to keep out the invading tendrils of the frigid air. Winter's searching fingers of cold stole into every corner of the courtyard, swirling invisible and heedless around the ninja guards who stood sentinel on the battlements. They kept a close watch over the grounds but the only real movement they could see was the gentle falling of the soft snow.

Overall it was a very peaceful and serene scene.

One that was violently broken by a sudden explosion.

If the loud boom and shuddering of the school's floor wasn't enough to wake up the students, then the ceremonial banging of the warning gong certainly did. Less than a minute later the students were up, dressed and headed towards the armory. Ron pulled on his mask while he ran towards the crowd of ninjas. He wasn't really sure _why_ he was going with them since he was still wasn't sure if he could be of an actual help in a fight, but he felt he owed everyone for the help they had given him.

Besides his doubts didn't have too long to linger before Yori was shoving a sheathed katana in his hands. He gave her a rather unsure look through is mask, but she quickly put them to rest with four words that never failed to get to him:

"I believe in you."

At those simple words, his eyes narrowed in determination and he gripped the sheathed sword and strapped it onto his back. He then joined the rest of his ninja classmates in running into the courtyard to see who was attacking them. When they arrived outside they found a group of about sixty people standing in front of the burning section of the school, the light from the fire giving them all a menacing appearance. Like the students of Yamanouchi they were all dressed in ninja style gi, but instead of black or white they were all a blood red color. They also all wore masks to conceal their identities and seemed rather anxious to use the weapons they were holding. There were two that stood out in front of the crowd and judging by the differences in their uniforms, the Yamanouchi students assumed they were the leaders.

One was a girl who's gi was actually quite similar to those of the other red colored ninjas with the exception of her mask. While the rest wore masks that covered everything but their eyes, her mask only covered the bottom half of her mouth. This left the top of her head open to expose her long, black hair which was pulled back into a tight braid and hung just above the small of her back. It waved gently in the slight winter wind as her dark brown eyes glared across the assembled students with murderous intent. It was a feeling only amplified by her weapons of choice. On each hand she wore gauntlets that covered the back of her hands and her forearms and matched the color of her gi. Extending out from the knuckles where three long steel blades that glistened in the light of the fire. Though they were held at her sides, it seemed like they could spring forward and cut up an unlucky opponent as any given second.

The second figure that stood slightly ahead of her was male and the radical differences in his uniform made it clear that he was the overall leader of the pack. The basis of it was very much the same blood red gi as the others but the top had a hood attached to it that further covered his already masked face. Twin katanas crisscrossed over his back and like the girl he wore red metal gauntlets over the back of his hands and forearms, though they lacked the claws. He also wore shin guards that not only protected his legs but no doubt gave his kicks add force as well. While he seemed much more controlled than the girl, his own dark eyes held a glare of anger and contempt that was made all too clear by the flickering light.

"Students of Yamanouchi!" he proclaimed loudly. "We are the Blood Clan! And were are here to end the pathetic joke this school has become!"

"And who are you to make such claims?!" Yori challenged.

The masked figured chuckled bitterly.

"Has it really been so long that you've forgotten me?" he asked in an annoyed tone. "Well maybe this will help."

With that, he pulled back his hood then removed his mask to reveal himself to be...

"Fukushima!" Yori gasped.

"So you _do_ remember me," he remarked with a smirk.

"Why are you doing this?!"

Fukushima's smirk quickly turned into a hardened scowl.

"You of all people have the gall to ask me that?!" he spat almost hysterically. "After you fought with this...this..._outsider_ against me and had me thrown out of Yamanouchi?!"

"_You_ were the one who betrayed _us_!" Yori hissed back. "You helped Monkey Fist steal the Lotus Blade. With its power, he would have destroyed us all."

"We were already being destroyed! It started the moment Sensei decided we needed _him_," he jabbed a finger angrily in Ron's direction. "He was _never_ one of us and should have never been allowed to come."

"Monkey Fist was just as much of an outsider!"

"No! He found the school on his own. He understood and respected our traditions. He wasn't some...some..._buffoon _brought here because of an old man's foolish beliefs!"

Yori eyes narrowed dangerously as she unfolded her bladed fans.

"I would watch what you say Fukushima," she warned in a low growl. "Though you have already declared yourself our enemy, no blood has been spilt yet. Perhaps we can still work something out. You were an exceptional student."

"And I was exiled for not blindly following Sensei's beliefs and giving the Lotus Blade to someone who truly deserved it," he growled back. He then shook his head. "No, there _is_ no going back. As you can see I've assembled my own clan. The Blood Clad. So named because of our blood vengeance against Yamanouchi and it's students."

"Then we have nothing more to discuss," Yori remarked.

"No, we don't," Fukushima replied then pulled his mask back on and raised his hood. "Blood Clan, take care of the other students. But the boy and girl belong to us. Is that understood?!"

"Yes Master!" the red clan ninjas shouted as one.

"Good. Then...ATTACK!!!"

"Students of Yamanouchi, defend our home!" Yori called out to her follow students.

"We fight as one!" the students replied.

With that the two groups of ninjas lunged past their leaders and straight towards each other. The clanging of hardened steel filled the night air tempered weapons collided with one another. It was followed by dull thuds and pained groans as well placed punches and kicks landed their marks. Both groups of ninjas battled with all their strength. The Yamanouchi students fought to defend their school and home while the Blood Clan fought to destroy it.

In the midst of all this chaos, four figures stood perfectly still. They glared across the snowy courtyard at each other, the slowly dying fire from the school giving them all an eerie glow. Yori's face was scrunched up in a look of contempt and betrayal as she focused on Fukushima. While the former student's face was mostly covered, his furrowed brow and slitted eyes cared the same look as Yori's, though they seemed much more focused on Ron.

For his part, Ron was still a bit uneasy about this whole thing. To be honest he didn't even remember Fukushima from his last trip to Yamanouchi until this whole thing started. But now here he was, being glared at by the red cloaked ninja like they were mortal enemies. It was at once kind of disturbing and a little flattering. He was just hoping his own eyes didn't give away the slight hint of nervousness he still felt about fighting a full on ninja battle. Still after everything the school did to help him, he wasn't about to turn his back on them now.

The girl standing off to Fukushima's side continued to stare death at her opponents. Though she stood perfectly still, her muscles were tensed up in anticipation for battle. Like a snake coiled up and ready to strike. The bright, white snow slowly covering her contrasted sharply with her raven locks and dark red of her gi. The claws on her hands continued to glisten in the mix of moonlight and dying embers as if they themselves were waiting for the fight as much as she was. She finally started to make a move by bring them up to bare in front of her.

"Ryoko," Fukushima addressed her. "You can have Yori but the outsider is mine."

"Of course," she said in a low, almost hissing whisper.

He gave a slight nod which she returned eagerly. They then launched themselves towards their respective opponents. Fukushima drew his twin swords from behind him while in midair, intending to finish off Ron in two simple swipes. Unfortunately, Ron was quick enough to draw his own sword and hold it above him to block his attack. He let out a small grunt as the force of the blow forced his knees to buckle a bit. Still, for the most part, he kept his ground and pushed the red clad ninja back. When their swords collided again, Ron could see that Fukushima's swords had small grooves cut into the blades making them almost like saw blades. No doubt to make any stab wounds or cuts they inflicted even more painful.

_Right. Gotta remember to avoid _that_! _Ron noted.

That was easier thought than done, however, as every time he made a move to block one of Fukushima's swords the other one would swing around for an attack. Even with his training and seemingly natural ability, the style was keeping him off balance and forcing him back a bit. The only thing that really worked in his favor is that trying to balance a sword in each hand made Fukushima's attacks a little slower. He just needed an opening to take advantage of that. Such an opening came when the Blood Clan leader raised his swords above his head again. Ron quickly brought up his left foot and kicked him square in the gut. Fukushima groaned and fell backwards only to quick spring back up to his feet.

"Your tricks won't save you this time outsider," he growled.

Ron just narrowed his eyes and gripped his grip on the handle of his sword.

"What's the matter? No inane comeback you think is witty?" Fukushima taunted. He then noticed the hint of a scar he could see through the open part of Ron's mask. "Or is it that you _can't_ talk?"

Ron's brow furrowed a bit.

"I see now. That must be so hard for someone like you who _loved_ to make all his little jokes. Well allow me to put you out of your misery!"

He then lunged forward again and continued his attack with renewed force. Ron countered as best he could, using his speed and agility to his advantage. Unfortunately even with all his "natural abilities" and Mystical Monkey Power learning curve he was still _years_ behind Fukushima. And of course there was that pesky double sword thing. Even if it did through off the other ninja's balance a bit, his skill helped him more than make up for it. Or maybe it was Ron's lack of skill. Either way, the fight wasn't going in the blond's favor.

_Okay so think about it here Stoppable,_ he thought as he blocked another swipe from Fukushima's left sword. _Obviously straight Yamanouchi style isn't working here. I'm not doing bad but I'm not doing great either. Gotta way to actually attack into of just block. _His eyes narrowed in thought while he ducked a slash from his opponent's right sword. _Yamanouchi style isn't working...so maybe I should throw in a little Ron style. _

He smirked behind his mask then brought his sword up to block both of Fukushima's swords. He gripped the handle tightly with both hands before he pushed upward with all his strength. He was able to push his opponent back far enough for him to jump a few feet back and give him the space he needed to enact this plan. While Fukushima regained his balance, Ron tucked his hand under his chin and wiggled his fingers tauntingly at the red clad ninja.

"What?!" Fukushima shouted in confusion.

Ron ignored him and continued to wag his fingers for a few more seconds before he stuck his free hand up by his ear and waved them there. He almost stuck his tongue to complete the look but remembered his mask would have made that a little difficult to pull off. Not that it mattered because even that half made gesture was having it's desired effect.

"Stop mocking me!" the other ninja growled. "You will take this fight seriously! You will take _me_ seriously! Or I will kill you in the most painful way imaginable!"

Ron made the "Oooh I'm scared" motion with his free hand which sent Fukushima charging towards him again with a snarl. Just as he thought, the red ninja's attacks were now less focused which made it easier for him to avoid or counter them. With renewed confidence, Ron pressed his attack and managed to push Fukushima back a bit. He continued to throw out as many odd or taunting gestures as he could to keep his opponent off balance. For every swing of a sword there was a dismissive wave of a hand and for every dodge there was an almost clownish footwork that implied he wasn't taking the fight seriously. Eventually the red clad ninja grew so frustrated that Ron was able to knock both his arms wide with a single swing of his sword before he balled up his fingers even tighter around the hand and punched the Yamanouchi traitor in the face. Fukushima growled in pain and annoyance as he stumbled backwards a bit. He shook his head to clear away the pain then howled in anger before he swept his swords forward in a scissor like motion. Ron did a back flip to avoid being cut in half but he still felt the saw like blades cut open the bottom of his boot and maybe even his foot a little. He ignored the cold feeling of the snow touching his bare flesh and kept his focus on his rival.

_Okay well it's sorta working,_ he thought. _Definitely got him mad. Which is making him sloppy so if I can keep this up I have a good chance of beating him! Yeah! It could work!_

He smiled behind his mask then looked down at his weapon.

_Still wish I had a better sword though._

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Deep inside the shrine of the Mystical Monkey, the box containing the Lotus Blade began to suddenly shake on it perch. The enchanted sword rattled around like an animal trying to escape a cage. Master Sensei stepped up to the case and began to pat it gently.

"Yes, I know, the time is soon approaching," he spoke softly. "But not just yet. We must give him a little more time."

With that the case calmed down but a faint glow could still be seen flicker from inside, as if it were waiting in eager anticipation

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While Ron continued his fight with Fukushima, Yori had her own hands full with the Blood Clan's second in command, Ryoko. She had avoided the clawed girl's initial lunging attack and even landed a foot to her back. Unfortunately, she had recovered quickly and they had been engaged in a back and fourth battle since. Yori used her metal fans as shields against Ryoko's claws and slashed out herself when she could. So far neither of them had been able to land more than superficial blows on the other, leaving only small cut marks along the arms and legs of their gi. Although they were fighting on opposite sides, Yori _did_ have to respect her adversary's abilities. She seemed rather skilled with the claws on her arms and had she faced any of the earlier year students they might have already fallen. She, however, had no plans to do such a thing.

They stared at each other from across the courtyard, eyes narrowed and bodies tensed for the next round. For a moment they simple stood there, letting the cold winter wind gently caress them. They each repressed a shudder as it chilled the small drops of sweat on their bodies. Their stares lasted only a few more seconds before they raced towards each other. Ryoko lashed out with her claws again and once more Yori was able to block them with her fans through a few simple twists of her wrists. Sparks flew to the snow covered ground as metal scrapped against metal. Yori continued to block the attacks until Ryoko pulled her left arm back for a stabbing strike which she countered by quickly placing a fan in between two of the metal claws and giving it a hard twist. The force and speed of the action caused the red ninja's arm to twist painfully with the fan. Ryoko let out yelp a pain then pulled back her arm and tried to stab the other ninja girl again with her right arm. This time Yori spun away from the attack and towards Ryoko. Catching her off guard, the more experienced ninja was able to hook her arm under her opponent's shoulder and throw her over her head.

Ryoko sailed through the air but was able to control her flight enough so that she could twist her body around just in time to land in a crouched position. She skidded along the snowy ground for a few feet, digging her claws into for stability. She then stood up and flexed her left arm to see what kind of shape it was in. There was a little pain but nothing that would slow her down too much. She then turned her dark eyes back towards Yori and raised both her clawed hands.

"I'm going to peel the flesh from your bones," she threatened in a soft, venomous voice.

"As the American's say," Yori started as she took a defensive stance, "bring it on."

Ryoko charged one more time, claws bared to make a quick, killing blow. Yori had anticipated such an attack so when the red ninja was close enough she spun on her heel and dipped the fan she held above her head low towards the ground. She swung upwards as she completed her spin, the speed and force of it causing the fan to pick up quite a bit of snow off the ground. By the time she had completed her rotation she had kicked up a small wall of snow that had hit Ryoko right in the face. As she sputtered and wipe it from her eyes, Yori used the last of her momentum to land a kick right into the other girl's stomach. This sent Ryoko to the ground again and Yori quickly placed the blades to one of her fans dangerously close to the fallen ninja's neck.

"You are defeated," she declared. "Surrender!"

"Only in death!" Ryoko spat out.

She then swiped her right arm against Yori's leg, the claws on it cutting her lightly. The pain forced her to recoiled her foot which gave Ryoko the chance she needed to push her off her and jump back up to her feet. She then raised her blades and when to cut open Yori's neck, but the black clad ninja ignored the pain in her leg enough to raise them both to catch the lunging body. She gasped as the claw tips came within just inches of her throat then grunted as she kicked Ryoko off of her.

The two made their way to their feet at the same time and spared another quick glare at each other before racing forward again to continue their battle.

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Ron let out a few ragged gasps as he raised his sword in front of him. While his plan to throw of Fukushima was working, it was _really_ exhausting. Despite what others thought, it took a lot of energy to be that goofy and combining that with sword fighting wasn't really the best idea. The good news is it seemed to be wearing Fukushima down too judging by the way his shoulders were going up and down. He held his own swords in front of him in the shape of an "X" as he stared contemptuously at Ron. Snow started to collect on their shoulders and arms as they stood still to catch their second winds. When their breathing slowed to a more normal pace their eyes narrowed at each other. The snow on their bodies and at their feet exploded into white clouds as they rushed each other. A loud "clang" reverberated in the night air as their swords met once more.

The muscles in Ron's arms tense as he put all his strength into pushing Fukushima's swords back. Unfortunately Fukushima was putting all his strength into pushing them forward and it turned out he was just a little bit stronger than the mute blond. Looking around for options, Ron spotted the shin guards on his opponent's legs. Obviously he knew any attack against them wouldn't be that effective but he had to try to something. So he shrugged as best he could, then braced his right leg before he quickly lifted his left on to stomp on Fukushima's right leg. As expected the blow itself didn't do much other than leave Ron's foot throbbing, but the force of the attack was enough to push the other ninja's leg back in the slick grass. The sudden shift in weight caused Fukushima to stumble which let Ron bring a hand up to grab his opponent's wrist and force the sword of his hand. He then carefully slipped his foot under the dull side of the blade and kicked if a few feet away.

Outraged and frustrated beyond belief, Fukushima head butted Ron to force him away and give himself some room. Unfortunately, the blow hurt him just as much as it did his rival and they both stumbled back a bit. Fukushima rubbed his now pounding head to try to ease the pain and when he could think clearly again, he found where his second sword had landed. He moved to retrieve it, but Ron moved too quickly and was suddenly blocking his way. He tried to slash at the outsider's head but he blocked it with is own sword. They struggled against each other again and Fukushima realized without the advantage of another sword the two were actually on equal footing. But that was impossible. The was no way the outsider had gotten this good in such a short amount of time.

"What is your secret?!" he screamed at Ron. "You _can't_ have progressed so far so quickly. So what is it?! What are you hiding?!"

Ron just shook his head. Really it was the only answer he _could_ give. The realization of which sent Fukushima into another snarling rage. Their swords clanged in the heat of battle, with every thrust and parry perfectly countered on each side. The two continued their back and fourth for a few minutes before they locked swords in a test of strength again. Taking a page from Ron's book, Fukushima lift his right leg to kick his opponent after a moment. Though instead of going for the leg, he planted his foot roughly into Ron's chest which sent him flying backwards into the cold snow. The red ninja then jumped high into the air, a small trail of snow following him as he raised his sword above his head with the intention of cutting Ron in two.

Fortunately, Ron was able to roll out of the way just in the nick of time. When he jumped up to his feet, however, he saw the other reason for Fukushima's dramatic attack. He frown under his mask as the red clad ninja pulled his other sword up from the snow.

_Oh come on!_ he screamed in exasperation mentally. _I _just _got rid of that thing!_

He braced himself as Fukushima charged again. He blocked the sword in his left hand, but the right one was thrust forward to stab him in the stomach. Ron side stepped the attack, but the cold metal still slashed through the shirt of his gi and left a light cut on his stomach. He grunted in pain but pushed it back and kicked the outstretched arm. Fukushima kept the grasp on his sword and yelped and shrunk back from the blow. His gauntlet absorbed most of the pain but he still felt a bit of a tingle which he had to force back to continue the fight. He unleashed a vicious flurry of swipes and slashes upon Ron, who was only able to dodge or counter about half of them. The other half struck him in non vital places and left only superficial wounds. Still they stung in the cold night air and were enough to slow him down to where he almost _did_ take a few fatal blows. The fight came to a head when Ron took another hard swing as Fukushima who not only blocked the attack but countered with such a powerful blow that it knocked the sword from Ron's hand. The sword spun through the air before it embedded itself in the ground several feet away from the combatants. Ron stared at it desperately for a few seconds before another hard kick from Fukushima send him to the ground.

"It ends _now_ outsider," the Blood Clan leader snarled as he raised his swords for the killer strike.

_No! It _can't _end like this!_ he cried desperately. _Not after everything I've been through! The scarring, the training, the fighting off the various urges for Yori! You mean to tell me I went through all that for _nothing_?! _His eyes narrowed in anger and frustration as his hands clenched around the snow. _No! It's _not_ for nothing! I'm _not_ going to die like _this_! I'll find my way out of this and beat this creep into the ground. I just need...something!_

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Back in the Mystical Moneky shrine, the case the held the Lotus Blade shook again, this time much more violently than before. So much so that the sword threatened to shatter the wooden box just to break free. Despite this frantic motion, Sensei remained as clam as ever. He walked up to the case and placed his hand over the latch.

"Yes, I believe is it time now," he said sagely.

With a flick of his wrist, he popped the latch open and in a bright flash the Lotus Blade flew past the old ninja master and out of the shrine. A proud smile graced Sensei under his long, white beard.

"Now Ron-san, embrace your destiny," he beamed proudly.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Fukushima couldn't help but laugh uproariously. With just one swing he would finally have his revenge on at least _one_ of the people that had disgraced him. And when the outsider was gone, the others were sure to follow quickly enough. He savored the moment for a few seconds before he brought his twin swords down on his helpless victim.

Unfortunately, his victory was stolen from him in a blindingly bright flash of light. A light that shone so brightly it illuminated the night sky and drew the attention of the other ninjas, causing them all to stop in mid fight. When both Ron and Fukushima regained their sight they stared in shock and awe as the Lotus Blade hovered in between them, blocking the killer blow. While Ron continued to stare blankly in disbelief, Fukushima scowled and tried to continue his attack. He groan with the effort and no matter how hard he pushed he just couldn't seem to move his swords forward.

_Okay, _that_ might work, _Ron thought in amusement as the Lotus Blade seemed to answer his earlier cry for help.

Slowly, hesitantly, he reached out to slowly wrap his fingers around the ornate handle. When he did there was a slight surge of power and another flash of light that forced Fukushima back. A blinding cocoon of light enveloped Ron and he felt a...power run through his body. He couldn't quite describe it but he felt...renewed. Whole. Like a piece of him that had been missing for a long time finally came back. It re-energized him and in fact he could feel his wounds closing shut. It lasted only a few seconds but when the energy died down, Ron felt he was finally ready to end this fight.

_Awesome,_ he thought of the empowered feeling running through his body.

He focused his attention on the stunned Fukushima then pointed at him with his free and prepared the perfect taunt for him. Unfortunately it seemed whatever healing power the Lotus Blade only extended as far as his battle wounds as the remark was lost to a ragged cough.

_Man _that_ tanks,_ he thought in dismay. _Still if the Lotus Blade really _can_ be anything I can imagine..._

He brought his other hand up to the hilt of the blade and with a quick blue flash, he was suddenly holding two identical looking swords.

_Booyah, _he grinned and narrowed his eyes at Fukushima.

This time it was Ron who raced forward in an attack that put the red ninja on the defensive. Their swords collided with such speed and fury that sparks rained down around their feet. They moved across the courtyard in a vicious dance that put more cuts and slashes over their bodies. It seemed the whole healing thing was a one time thing for Ron but even with his new cuts he barely slowed down. Unfortunately, it seemed even with the help of the Lotus Blade they were still on rather even ground. To help gain in an advantage, Ron added in a few kicks and hits every once and awhile but Fukushima countered with some of his own. Somewhere in the course of their duel they had made their way into the center of the battle between the two ninja clans. With their teammates on either side of them, they were more determined than ever not to fail. They locked swords and stared into each others' eyes, the urge to win shining brightly in both of them.

_Man this could go on forever,_ Ron thought in exhaustion. _I just gotta find some way to beat this creep! _

His mind raced with ideas as he held his ground against the more experienced swordsman. Despite his training, swords never really were Ron's specially which really was a little ironic when he thought about it. But he _couldn't_ think about it now, he had a fight to win.

_I just need to- _he paused when he finally took a good look at the weapons he was holding. _Waitaminute! I have the Lotus Blade! It can be _anything _I need it to be! Soooo...._

With a quick thought, the twin swords he held glowed blue before they suddenly changed into a pair of giant hands. They grabbed the shocked Fukushima's swords and tossed them aside. A smirk showed through the cut in Ron's mask as he pulled his hands together and the Lotus Blade changed again, this time to a large, cartoonish style mallet. He took a big swing at his opponent and hit him directly in the chest, sending him flying through the air and skidding to a halt right under tree. The harsh smack caused the branches of the tree to shake and dump a heavy amount of snow on the fallen Fukushima that buried him completely.

Ron gave an extremely satisfied nod as he changed the Lotus Blade back to it's original form and turned back to towards the other Yamanouchi students just in time to see Yori plant a devastating kick on Ryoko's chin which took the claw wielding girl out. With both their leaders down, the rest of the Blood Clan didn't last very long and it seemed the tide was finally turning in the favor of the Yamanouchi students. Ron was about to go help them out when a fierce and frustrated roar cut through the air.

All eyes turned to watch in amazement as Fukushima seemed to practically explode out of the mound of stone. His eyes shot daggers at Ron and his arm nearly followed suit as a blade popped out of his right arm gauntlet. He took a running charge towards the blond boy, all pretense of style and grace gone. All he wanted to do was _hurt_ the outsider. He readied his blade to run through Ron's heart, ending his embracement once and for all. It was a plan that was elegant in it's simplicity but one doomed to fail as Ron changed the Lotus Blade into a shield at the last second. The tip of Fukushima's blade bounce harmlessly off the newly created shield, sending ripples through his arm. Ron used the distraction to his benefit and smacked the other ninja on the chin with the shield with such a force that it sent him to the ground again.

Fukushima growled as he looked around him. The outsider had the Lotus Blade and knew how to use it. His last ditch attack had completely failed. Ryoko lay unconscious on the ground and the rest of his clan seemed to be failing as well. There was no doubt about it, he had lost. Even his damaged pride wasn't worth continuing a losing battle. So with great disdain he pulled himself to his feet and addressed his clan.

"Blood Clan! Disappear!" he ordered then quickly threw down a smoke pellet.

Those members of the Blood Clan who still stood did the same, covering the courtyard in an inky thick black smoke. Seeing the trick for what is it, the Yamanouchi students moved forward to try to stop their foes from escaping but it was no use. By the time the smoke had cleared they where all gone, leaving only foot prints in the snow in their wake.

Ron walked up to Yori where she and the other students were gathering around the charred remains of the main school building, the only other sign the rival ninjas had ever been there. Thankfully the lower grade students had been able to put out the fire during the battle and only half the building had burned. Still, it was a great blow to be dealt. This place was not only their school but also their home. Even if the Blood Clan had not won this day they had still earned a victory that night. As Ron looked around at them, he felt even more like an outsider looking in as he didn't feel the pain quite like they did. He was still sad as this place had helped him when he needed it the most. He walked up to Yori and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"I want to help," he signed to her.

She turned to face him and regarded him with a soft smile.

"No," she declined with a shake of her head. "It is not your place. This is _our _home, you have your own." She reached out and place her hand over his right hand, the one holding the Lotus Blade. "One that you must return to now that you have you finally embraced your destiny."

Ron looked doubtfully down at the Lotus Blade and shook his head. He tried to give the sword back but she just pushed it towards him.

"It is _yours_," she insisted. "_This_ is why you came here. While you have yet to fully master your Mystical Monkey Powers you are well on your way to doing so. At the very least you have the skills to stand proudly next to Kim Possible. That is why you came here, is it not?"

He thought about it for a moment and seemed to tilt his head to the side in a "Well yeah" gesture. Yori chuckled a bit as she stepped closer.

"I will miss your American style ways Ron-san, but I fear this is where our paths must separate again. I have to school to help rebuild and you have to rebuild," she said, stepping ever closer.

Ron felt a little awkward with how close she was getting but still wasn't prepared for when she wrapped her arms around his shoulders to pull him into a tight, warm hug. His eyes widened a bit in shock, but once he recovered he stabbed the Lotus Blade into the ground before he wrapped his arms around Yori's waist to hug her back.

"I understand we may never be together, but you will always hold a special place in my heart," she whispered. "I hope that we will meet again soon and of course under better circumstances. Until then, go forth and embrace your new life with the energy with which you embraced your old one."

He nodded into her shoulder as he gave her a tighter squeeze as a sign that he would do just that. He knew she was right, he had learned all he needed to here and the rest he could figure out along the way. He had been gone far too long and now he needed to return to the others and start the newest chapter of his life.

Whatever it may hold...

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Silvers of moonlight shone through the skylights in the Middleton History Museum, illuminating the darkened rooms and hallways with a soft blue light. Combined with the auxiliary lighting used at night, the empty museum was filled with enough light for someone to make their way through it rather easily while still avoiding detection. Which was exactly what the figures sulking around the Mystical Artifacts department of the museum were counting on. They crept along the shadows, out of sight of any of the guards that may be awake enough to do their jobs. Not that any of them would be able to stand against their perfectly honed ninjutsu skills. Even if four of their party were much smaller than the human guards. Still it didn't matter, soon their prize would be within their grasp.

Monkey Fist grinned evilly as his furry hands reach out to caress the glass display case that held the ancient looking parchment.

"You would think these fools would learn to up their security after our last 'visit'," he mused to himself as he studied the case. "Oh well, they're negligence shall be my gain. For once I uncover the secret to the prophecy of these 'Other Worldly Monkeys' I shall become the ultimate Monkey Master and then rule the world itself!"

He let out hearty, villainous chortle at the thought of world domination, but it was quickly quieted by the chittering of one of his moneky ninjas. He raised an eyebrow as he looked irritably at the offender.

"No Chippy we have _not_ done this one before!" he snapped.

Chippy held up a finger as he let out another series of chittering as if he offered a counterpoint.

"No, back then we were following a monkey _into_ space. According to the information I have on _this_ prophecy," he gesture towards the parchment, "the monkeys shall _come_ from space!"

The monkey ninja let out a questioning squeak.

"I don't know how. That's why I need to steal the parchment and study the prophecy to find out the answer. Now keep an eye out for intruders while I figure out how to get this case open without setting off the alarm."

"You mean intruders like us?" a sarcastic voice called out from the darkness.

Monkey Fist and his ninjas all turned their heads in surprise towards the voice and were stunned to see Kim Possible and Shego standing in the middle of the room, perfectly illuminated by the moonlight. While Shego had her usual relaxed and confident smirk on her face, Kim's expression was much darker. Her brow was furrowed, her jaw was clenched and her eyes were narrowed and full of anger for the monkey man. She balled her hands up into fists and breathed heavily through her nostrils as she stared at him.

"Kim Possible," he remarked in a smooth voice that covered up his initial shock. "I wish I could say I was surprised-"

"I think that girlish scream and the wide eyed stared already did that," Shego pointed out with a smirk.

Monkey Fist glared at her for a second but turned his attention back to Kim.

"Be that as it may, it seems even _without_ the usurper you seem to a thorn in my side," he finished irritably.

Kim's shoulder tensed up and she ground her teeth at the not so subtle insult towards Ron. The fact that it was the man who hurt him that made it made her even more angry. Monkey Fist caught on to this change in attitude and a smirk slowly crept over his long face.

"Aaah still a sore spot, is it?" he beamed almost proudly. "I suppose I can't blame you, he _was_ your sidekick for many years, wasn't he? Of course given how many times he held you back or flubbed up your missions, I dare say you should thank me for ridding you of his annoying presence."

He paused in his gloating to study her. Much to his surprise, however, it didn't seem like she was about to launch into an explosive, uncontrolled fury that would have made her easy to defeat. Instead, it seemed his taunting only focused her anger even more on him. She took a few more deep breaths before she glanced at Shego out of the corner of her eye.

"Shego, you can handle the small fry but the main monkey is mine," she instructed in a soft, even and surprisingly venomous voice.

She didn't wait for a reply before she started to take a step forward. She was stopped, however, when a strong hand landed on her shoulder and held her in place. She titled her head so she could look at Shego over her shoulder.

"Look, I get the whole 'wanting to get even thing' and I'm not gonna stop you from doing it just..." she paused as she tried to find the right words. "Don't forget who you are."

"Oh I know _exactly_ who I am," Kim replied then shrugged the hand off and continued her stride towards Monkey Fist.

Shego regarded her girlfriend sullenly for a moment before she turned her attention to the group of five monkey ninjas that were creeping up on her. She rolled her eyes at the utter ridiculousness of the concept but still got her game face on.

"You see that?" she jerked her thumb towards Kim. "That fine little piece is my usually feisty and fun loving girlfriend. Unfortunately she's been all sorts of depressed lately because your boss fried her oldest friend and former boyfriend. Now, while I would love to personally pound his head in for making her like that, I'm respecting her wishes on wanting to handle the matter on her own. So that means I'm stuck dealing with _you._ Which, quite honestly really annoys means since you're all just waaaay below my talents. You understand any of this?"

She paused and watched as they all looked between each other and made a few grunting and ooking sounds then turned their attention back to her.

"Riiiight. Well now that we know where were stand," she laced her fingers together and outstretched her hands to crack her knuckles, lighting up her plasma power as she did so. She then pulled her hands back and held them up to her face to help show off the almost sadistic smile now on her face. "So who's first?"

The monkeys' eyes widened in terror before they shrieked in terror and crawled all over each other in a frantic attempt to get away from the crazed green woman.

"Yeah you _better_ run!" Shego called out as she chased them down the hallway, shooting bolts of green and black plasma as she did so.

While Shego kept herself busy with the monkey ninjas, Kim kept her focus solely on Monkey Fist. Even as she stepped ever closer he showed no signs he was taking her seriously. He didn't even try to get into a defensive stance, he just stood there with the same smug expression on his face. He even crossed his arms over his chest to complete the image of cool arrogance.

"Oh are you still going to try to fight me?" he asked with mock concern. "Come now that wouldn't be a very good idea. We both know you've never beaten me in a one-on-one fight without that buffoon around and since he's permanently out of the picture what hope do you have to-"

His triad was cut short when Kim hit him right in the face with a hard right cross. The blow held enough force behind it to knock him to the floor. He blinked in surprise at the uncharacteristic attack, but quickly recovered with a scowl. The gauntlet having been cast, Monkey Fist jumped up to his feet then started his attack with a right hook of his own. Kim dodged the attack and tried to strike him again with her right hand but he caught it with his left. He then twisted her arm to the side returned the punch from before, hitting her square on the forehead. She stumbled backwards a bit and barely had time to recover before he was on her again. He unleashed a quick flurry of jabs and kicks that put her on the defensive.

Kim blocked the attacks and stuck back when she could. Even so, the assault was pushing her back a bit. All his boasting aside, Monkey Fist _was _her second most challenging villain in strict hand-to-hand combat, second only to Shego. There were two simple reasons for this fact. One, was because out of the sixteen different styles of kung fu she learned she only dabbled in Monkey Kung Fu and so never learned to really counter or use it that well. Second, was simply because he had four hands. While a good placed kick could always help her out in a fight, the fact that one of his kicks could also toss her across the room gave him a pretty good advantage.

She tried to counterattack that advantage by using her usual high flying, cheerleading influenced style but unfortunately he was one of the few people who could keep up with her. They bounced off the walls and tangled a few times in midair before they tumbled to the floor. The wrestled around for a moment before Kim was able to kick Monkey Fist off her. He flipped through the air and landed on his hand like feet and glared at her.

"Well it seems you've improved a bit from the last time we actually fought," he begrudgeningly complimented. "Is it that Shego's been helping you iron out the wrinkles in your style," a sadistic smile spread over his face, "or is it that you're just more motivated to defeat me as a form of revenge?"

"Shut. UP!" Kim screamed in rage as she launched herself into a flying kick.

Monkey Fist easily grabbed the outstretched leg and tossed her towards the nearest wall. She twisted her body so she could plant her feet against the wall and launch herself back at the supposed "Monkey Master". She tackled him to the ground and landed a few good punches to his jaw before he brought his legs up and grabbed her waist with his feet hands. He then jerked her off him and smashed her head rather roughly against the title floor. She let out a cry of pain and held the back of her throbbing head before she rolled over onto her side. She looked up at him with blurry vision and saw him raise his fist to deliver another crushing blow to her. Thankfully she barely managed to roll out of the way in time and caused him to smash his fist into the floor. She would have smirked in satisfaction if she wasn't so busy trying to stand upright. When she _did_ manage to get to her feet she was still a bit light headed and found it difficult to focus. She managed to swat away a few of his punches but the uppercut from his lower hand knocked her back to the floor. He gave her a quick gut kick just to make sure she stayed put then walked over to a statue of an ancient warrior dressed in serpent like armor and yanked the mock up of the sword from its hand. While certainly not the "Dragon's Claw" sword it claimed to be, it was still made of surprisingly durable metal and would most likely skewer the annoying redhead if enough force was applied. He smirked then casually walked over to the young heroine who was struggling to get back her feet again. He pushed her back down with a casual shove of his left foot then raised the sword high above his head with both hands.

"And now I'll rid myself of my _second_ greatest annoyance!" he exclaimed with malicious glee.

His wicked smile grew wider as he plunged the sword downward, aiming for Kim's heart. He found it almost a shame this moment would go by so quickly. After all these years he was finally able to do what _no one_ else had; kill Kim Possible! His blood rushed as the sword's tip drew ever closer to her slender form, ready to pierce it and put her out of everyone's misery.

His victory was suddenly and unexpectedly taken from him with a loud "clang" as second sword blade seemed to come out of nowhere and knock the prop out of his hands. The sound of metal scraping against title filled the spacious room as it slide along the floor. Monkey Fist looked to his side in complete shock and saw a figure dressed in a black gi standing there, his outstretched hands holding a familiar looking sword. He let out a shocked gasp when he took a closer look at the sword and realized it was the Lotus Blade. His wide eyes then followed the length of the blade, past the arms and up to the masked head of the mysterious ninja. All he could see through the open part of the mask was a deep scar cutting diagonally in between two bright blue eyes that were focused entirely on him. Eyes that he couldn't believe he was looking into again.

"No," he whispered, horrified. "It can't be _you_! It just can't be!"

The ninja offered no response. He just drew back the Lotus Blade and placed a kick to Monkey Fist's stomach hard enough to send him toppling to the floor. Kim blinked from her place on the floor as her vision finally cleared up. She still blinked a few times to make sure she wasn't just sending things or having some kind of hallucination from a mild concussion.

"R-Ron?" she asked unsurely.

He slipped the sword back into the sheath over his right shoulder before he looked down at her and even though he wore a mask, she could practically see his reassuring smile as he nodded and held out a hand towards her. Still a little unsure, she hesitantly reached out for him and half expected him to disappear into some kind of haze before she actually touched him. Thankfully his hand turned out to be quite real as it helped pull her up to her feet. She still continued to blink a few times as she at the apparently new and improved Ron. There were so many things she wanted to say to him, so many feelings she wanted to get out from the last six months that she needed to express. She had even rehearsed them several times in her head for his eventual return but now that she was face to face with him again she just couldn't find those repeated words. Instead she did the only thing she could think to do at the moment.

"Oh Ron you're back!" she cried out happily as she wrapped him up in a tight hug.

Much more prepared for this hug than the one Yori gave him the other night, Ron smiled widely beneath his mask and hugged Kim back tightly. Even if it was just a hug out of friendship, it felt infinitely good to be back in her embrace. It was almost like finding a piece of himself again. It was one of the best hugs he'd ever have in his life and he really didn't want it to end. Sadly though, it came to a rather abrupt ending as Monkey Fist jumped back to his feet with an enraged howl.

"YOU!!" he shouted, pointing to Ron. "I don't know how you survived but now I'll finish you _both_ off _and_ finally claim the Lotus Blade as my own!"

He snarled again, spittle falling from the corners of his mouth as he charged them in a blind rage. Kim and Ron stared at his approaching form for a second before they spared each other a glance and nodded. They held their embrace until Monkey Fist almost on top of them at which point they broke apart and lashed out with their fists in a prefect reflection of each other. Both fists hit the snarling monkey man square in each eye and knocked him to the floor with such a force that his head bounced off the polished title. He let out a small groan as he slipped into unconsciousness. The duo each felt a strange bit of satisfaction at seeing him bested but put it aside as they turned their attention back to each other. More importantly Kim took a moment to regard Ron more closely.

"So you sticking with this whole ninja look now or do you plan on going back to your regular mission clothes?" she joked.

Ron shrugged good naturedly then made a few strange motions with his hands. Kim just stared blankly at him.

"Um....did you learn sign language while you were away?"

He smacked himself on the forehead then nodded as an explanation.

"Wow that's pretty impressive to learn in that short a time. I'm assuming you also learned a whole lot of new ninja tricks too?"

Again he nodded and looked like he was about to try to explain himself as best he could when something suddenly flew in between them and landed on Monkey Fist's prone form. When the shock wore off they saw it was one of his monkey ninja's that looked just as unconscious as him. It followed by another and another and soon enough there was a small pile of them on top of their master. Kim and Ron blinked then turned around to find Shego walking up to them and dusting her hands off. She stopped next to Kim and looked over the newest ninja.

"You look ridiculous in that outfit," she remarked.

"Shego!" Kim chided.

She rolled her eyes with a sigh. "And welcome back and all that crap." She looked down at the pile of bad guys at their feet. "So we done here?"

The redhead smiled gently at her and Ron.

"Yeah, I think we are," she mused. "Let's head home. All three of us."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Bonnie sat on the couch and idly flipped through the channels. It was the time of night when nothing really good was on but she wasn't quite ready to go to bed just yet. She had the day off tomorrow and she wanted to savor every waking hour she could away from that horrible job. After skimming through a few more channels she finally gave up and left it on whatever the Comedy Channel was playing this time of night. Usually the rerun of some movie they had already shown a thousand times before. She set the remote down on the coffee table then regarded the deeply sleeping Rufus in her lap. An amused smile crossed her face as she reached down and gently rubbed his tiny head with the tip of her index finger. Admittedly it had taken her some time to warm up to the little guy, even _with_ Ron around, but taking care of him these past few months really helped them bond. Even though the process was a _lot_ more involved then she thought it was. She just figured he hung out in Ron's pocket all day and ate Nacos when they stopped by Beuno Nacho.

Oh how wrong she was.

Still, even with the laundry list of things she had to do, she enjoyed the time she spent with him. Partly because it turned out he was rather quite fun and affectionate but mostly because he was the only part of Ron she had to keep her company while he was away on his "training mission". Obviously he wasn't quite _literally _a piece of Ron but she could see how some of his traits rubbed off on the little mole rat and those made her smile. It was better than nothing, but she'd still rather have Ron himself back with her.

She tilted her head a bit at the sound of the front door opening and heard Kim and Shego's voices walking into the living room.

"So how'd it go?" she asked even as she continued to stared blankly at the TV screen.

"Much, _much_ better than expected," Kim's excited voice called out.

"Finally put that monkey faced bastard away?" Bonnie snarled.

"Well there was that but...well...Bonnie you better stand up for this."

The brunette let out an annoyed sigh then gently picked Rufus up and set him down on the couch. Even with being careful, the mole squinted and let out a small yawn as he stretched himself awake. Bonnie shook her head at him then turned her full attention to Kim who seemed particularly bouncy about something. It was the same time of upbeat bubbliness that annoyed her to no end back in their high school days and this late at night those same feelings started to return.

"So what's the big deal?" she grumbled.

Kim was practically bursting at the seams she was so giddy, while Shego just rolled her eyes and moved over to sit on the couch.

"Oh nothing really," Kim gushed. "I just thought after all this time you'd want to see who finally came back."

Bonnie's eyes widened at the implication of the redhead's words.

"Kim you had _better_ not be joking," she warned.

The other girl continued to smile widely before she stepped aside to reveal Ron's black clad figure behind her. Bonnie's eyes widened even further, getting as big as saucers, as her mouth fell open with shock and joy. So many emotions circled around in her head that she couldn't move for several seconds. It was only when Ron took a step towards her that her feet finally worked again. She practically sprinted towards him to close the gap as quickly as possible. Finally prepared for one of these moments, Ron opened his arms wide in preparation for the impending hug that he would be all too happy to return.

Unfortunately, as soon as Bonnie was within arm's reach she gave him a hard smack across the cheek, much to the surprise of everyone there. _Especially_ Ron.

_Okay, _that _I didn't expect,_ he thought then turned his head to face her again.

"_That's_ for going off and leaving like that you big jerk!" Bonnie shouted, tears welling up in the corner of her eyes. Her expression quickly softened into a relieve smile as she moved forward for the hug he had been expecting. "And _this_ is for finally coming back."

He brought wrapped his hands around her waist to give her the tightest hug he had given yet. There were so many ways he _wanted_ to say he was sorry to her but not in anyway she could understand at the moment. So instead he settled on letting his embrace do the talking for him. He gently rubbed her back and held her as tightly as he could. They stayed like that for several seconds, completely ignoring everyone else in the room. While Kim was overjoyed for them and Shego only mildly happy, Rufus was completely distraught. While he could understand the desire his master would have to be with his mate, he was also wanted some attention from the freshly arrived blond.

"Ron! Ron!" he chittered in a pleading way as he started to run towards the two.

"Oh no you don't!" Shego called out as he grabbed his tail to stop him. "Let's let them have their little moment together, okay? I'm sure you'll be back to popping out of his pocket in no time."

"Aaaawww," Rufus whined even as he shrunk back to the couch.

After what seemed like forever, Bonnie finally brought herself to pull back a bit from Ron so she could actually see him again. Though she was greeted with an ugly black ninja mask that really annoyed her. She scowled as she moved a hand up to the top of it.

"Let's get rid of this annoying thing," she remarked.

Ron's eyes widened and he pulled away from her with a shake of his head. Bonnie's frowned deepened and she placed her hands on her hips.

"What you think you're gonna wear that thing all the time from now on?" she pressed.

He shrugged.

"Ron you can't do that," Kim sighed, taking a step closer to him. "Eventually you're going to have to remove that mask."

"Especially if you want to make up for all the 'private time' we missed out on while you're gone," Bonnie snapped.

"Okay I did _not_ need to know that," the redhead gaffed.

"Whatever," the brunette scoffed as she walked up to Ron again. "Look, I know you're probably all freaked out about your scars but no one here is going to judge you for them, right?"

"Of course not," Kim nodded.

"I might," Shego quipped with a raise of her hand.

Kim turned her head to glare at her girlfriend who merely shrugged then turned back to the magazine she had been reading. Bonnie also glared a her supposed friend before she turned her attention back to Ron. She smiled warmly at him as she closed the gap between them again and placed hand lovely on his left cheek.

"Please Ron, for me. For us," she said softly.

Ron let out the best sigh he could as he looked into her aqua colored eyes with their pleading look. He just couldn't say "no" to this girl. Even when he literally _couldn't_ say "no" to her. He closed his eyes and nodded his confirmation to her. She smiled as she moved her hand up to the top of the mask and carefully pulled it off him to finally reveal his face to all of them. There was a moment of silence as they took in the visage before them. Truth be told he didn't look _that_ much different from before the explosion except for the fact that his face was littered with scars. The biggest of which ran diagonally from his left cheek, across his nose right between his eyes and stopped at the middle of his forehead. Near that one was a "X" shaped scar on his left cheek, one going down from the right corner of his mouth to his neck then one stretching from his right eye to his ear which was missing a small chunk out of the top of it. There were a few more tiny ones here and there but they seemed to be healing up rather well. It also seemed his hair grew back to its original spiky banged, cow licked self in all the months he was gone. He opened his eyes after a second and looked towards Bonnie and Kim for appraisal of his new look.

"Actually...it's not that bad at all," Kim mused.

"No kidding," Bonnie agreed. "The way people where talking I thought he'd end up looking like Freddy Kruger or something. Instead it makes him look kinda...rugged."

He quirked a questioning eyebrow at her.

"Hey I call it like I see it," she remarked. "I admit, Old Bonnie might have made some hurtful remarks about them and probably would have left. But New Bonnie..."

She ended that sentence by moving forward and capturing his lips in a deep, passionate kiss. Realizing this was an even _better_ way to express his feelings, he wrapped his arms around her again and returned the kiss with a such force and passion it made her weak in the knees. Their tongues dueled for a moment and Bonnie quite reluctantly pulled back from it to catch her breath.

"Oh wow..." she gasped, her eyes glazed over a bit. "Okay I know you just got home and all but do you think you have the energy to...?"

He nodded eagerly with a wide grin and that was all the incentive Bonnie needed. She took him by the hand and practically dragged him to her room. The sound of the door slamming shut soon followed and Kim, Shego and Rufus were left alone in the living room in amazement. Shego pulled back her left hand glove to check the watch she worn underneath it.

"Huh. Ten minutes," she muttered then held her right hand up towards Kim. "Pay up."

Kim sighed as she reached into her pocket and pulled out a twenty dollar bill which she begrudgingly slapped into Shego's hand as she passed by her. She then sat down next to her on the couch and snuggled up against her.

"Fine, you're right," she admitted almost bitterly. "But you've got to admit it's nice to have him back."

"I don't have to admit anything," she said offhandedly as she flipped through the magazine again.

"No you don't. I can see right there on your face," she smirked as she poked Shego's cheek. "In fact I saw it on your face back at the museum."

Shego sighed and looked over at the redhead.

"Look Kimmie, I know what you're trying to do and you're _not_ going to get me to admit it. Let's just leave it like it is, okay?"

"Fine," she muttered then looked towards the bedroom hallway. "They're going to make a lot of noise tonight, aren't they?"

"Well _she_ is."

"Right. I still can't believe they did that almost the moment Ron walked through the door."

"_I_ do. She's been building up for what, six months now? She was ready to blow one way or another," she commented then smirked a bit. "Which she might be doing right now actually."

Kim's face screwed up in disgust. "Okay _really _don't need _that_ image in my head!"

Shego chuckled a bit. "Want to give them a run for their money?"

"No," she frowned. "Not now. Not ever again. For now I want to just sit here and enjoy the fact that my best friend's finally home."

Shego remained silent but wrapped her arm around Kim's shoulder to draw her in closer. Her girl was finally happy again and _that_ made her quite happy herself.

_Plus I guess it's not _that_ bad to have the big dummy back again,_ she thought with a barely repressed smile.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The next morning Ron groggily made his way out of Bonnie's room, his gi looking rather disheveled which only matched his mussy hair. He had gotten as far as the living room when he spotted Kim standing there holding two steaming mugs. She beamed happily as she handed him one.

"It's hot chocolate," she explained. "Never was much of a coffee drinker myself."

Ron nodded with a smile as he took the offered mug and blew on it a few times before taking a cautious sip. His smile widened in approval as he held up the "OK" sigh with his other hand.

"It doesn't hurt your throat then?" she asked in concern.

He shook his head.

"Good, so why don't we sit down on the couch and talk," she suggested.

Ron held up a finger in a "Buuuut" gesture but Kim waved it off. She then led him to the couch where she pointed to a notepad and pencil sitting there. He made a silent "Ah" expression then sat down next to her. Kim took a sip from her own mug then set it down and look at him.

"Ron there's so much I want to say and I just really don't know where to start," she confessed. "But I guess the best place is that it's _really_ good to have you back."

"It's good to be back," he wrote on the pad.

"Oh I'm sure it is given how much nosie Bonnie was making last night."

He blushed a deep red and ducked his head away. She couldn't help but chuckle as she placed a hand over his.

"No it's okay. I can certainly understand those kind of urges and you guys hadn't seen each other for a long time. Still I would have liked it you could have controlled yourselves just a _little_ longer."

"Sorry it just kinda all happened so fast," his latest note revealed.

"Well for Bonnie's sake I hope it wasn't _too_ fast," Kim said with a wink.

Ron gave her a completely surprised expression as if he couldn't believe she said that. This time it was her turn to blush.

"Sorry, I guess that was a bit of Shego's influence slipping out there," she explained.

He nodded a bit uncomfortably and took another sip of his hot chocolate. He then made another quick note to show her.

"So what did I miss while I was away?"

"Well you missed Shin's first birthday for one!" she chided him. "You are _so_ going to make that up to her."

He nodded vigorously before he scribbled the another question.

"Anything else?"

Kim seemed to think about it for a second.

"Well I _did_ get to meet Shego's mentor," she remarked.

Ron's eyebrows shot up at that comment.

"Tell me!" he wrote down quickly.

"Well, like always, it started with a call from Wade..." she began her tale.

**The End**

**Author's Notes: **Finally! FINALLY!! I got this damn chapter finished! After three months I got it finished! Hahahahahahahaha! I'm just...so relieved right now. One thing I've learned from this whole experience is that writing sword fighting scenes are a BITCH! And definitely not my specialty. So I did the best I could with it and I really hope it came out half as good as I think it did.

The other reason this chapter is so late is because work has just been a _huge_ pain in the ass this year and it's totally draining me. I really like to give it all my all when I write my fanfics to really get into the thoughts and emotions of the characters I'm writing. The problem is with work draining me so much as it has I've really had nothing left to give. So it _really_ slowed me down quite a bit. As you can tell from this fic not being done for almost a _year_! That's just inexcusable to me by my own standards. Which, admittedly is probably pretty high but still I should have been done with this thing by now.

Of course saying it's the end of the fic is a little premature as I have an epilogue scene in mind that I hope to get to next week. After that, though, I'm taking a break from writing all together to just sit, relax, and catch up on the mountain of DVDs I really need to watch. When I get done with that I'll be taking a small break from my "Maternal Instinct" universe so focus on some ideas I have for other fandoms I'm into and also some of my other KP universes. This _was_ my new years resolution but...well you see how well _that_ went!

Ugh, I'm just hoping next year will be better.

Alright that's all I got for now. Hopefully I'll be back in a week with the true finale of this story and I _really_ hope you all enjoyed the hard work I put into this thing.

Laters!


	6. Ron Stoppable: Ninja Badass

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kim Possible. She is owned by Disney and Mark McCorkle and Bob Schooley. Any original characters shown or mentioned belong to me and can not be used without permission. Got it?_

**Sidekick, No More**

**Epilogue: Ron Stoppable: Ninja Badass**

When Ron finally returned home, he was practically assaulted by sobbing hugs and kisses from his relieved mother. Even his normally relaxed father greeted him with a rather tear eyed hug. He explained what had happened as best he could and why he had to leave but he wasn't quite sure they understood. He knew they _definitely _didn't understand his need to go back out into the field with Kim. In fact it led to another round of crying and hysterical shouting from his mother. Even his father gave him some pointed looks as he tried to calm her down. Ron let them work it out among themselves as he went up to his room and tried to readjust to being back home.

The next few days were tension and avoidance as neither Ron nor his parents really wanted to even _try_ to discuss the whole thing. Meals were rather awkward and unpleasant and anytime he mentioned he was going to go see Kim his mother gave him a look that made him shrink back a bit, ninja hardened nerves notwithstanding. He left plenty of notes around to explain himself but she just crumpled them up and tossed them in the trash. Despite what she may have thought it _did_ break his heart to put her through this, but he was determined to continue his missions. Just as he thought when he fought Fukushima he rationalized that he _wouldn't_ have gone through all this for nothing.

Still the whole thing did take the wind out of his sails a bit. After another all too silent dinner, Ron went up to his room and laid on his bed to star the ceiling for awhile as he thought things over. Rufus had scurried over to him and he idly put the naked mole rat as he placed his other arm behind his head.

_I don't know,_ he thought solemnly. _Maybe...maybe I _should_ give this up. I mean Mom's really upset over this whole thing and who can blame her? I've been through a _lot_ during this whole ordeal. _His eyebrows furrowed a bit. _But that's exactly the point! I went through in these last few months that I just have to do..._something_! I just wish mom would lighten up on the whole guilt trip thing. Or that maybe Dad would help me out a bit with her. I mean I know he's not in _favor_ of it, but he's not totally _against_ it, right?_

A gentle knock on his door brought him out of his thoughts. He pulled himself off the bed and slowly made his way to the door which he was a bit hesitant to open. He quickly recovered his courage and pulled it open to find his dad standing on the other side holding a small brown box.

"Your friend Wade had this delivered today," he explained as he held out the box.

Ron's eyes brightened a bit as he realized what it might be and he eagerly took the package from his father. He gave him a thankful smile and nod and was about to shut the door when his father held up a hand to stop him.

"Just a moment, Son," he said softly.

Ron gave him a curious look but stopped and let nodded for him to continue. Mr. Stoppable took a deep breath and rubbed the back of his neck nervously as he tried to figure out just how to put into words what he wanted to say.

"Ronald...as you can probably tell your mother is _not_ happy about the idea of you still going on missions with Kim given...what happened," he started slowly.

The scarred boy tilted his head a bit to show that he understood.

"And to be perfectly honest I'm not really that thrilled with it myself," he confessed. "But I _do_ understand why you feel you need to do it. It doesn't mean I won't worry about you while you're out there or that I haven't been doing that all along."

Ron's eyes widened at that revelation.

_Oh man I never knew that,_ he thought remorsefully.

He set the package aside and reached for a note pad and pencil in his pocket but was stopped by an upheld hand from his father.

"No you don't need to try to explain it," Mr. Stoppable told him. "I'm sure you've had your reasons for helping Kim all this time just as I'm sure you have your reasons for continuing to help her. It's not going to be an easy thing for your mother and me to accept but we'll get there. Eventually."

He offered his son a gentle smile before he continued.

"There's just one more thing I want to say. Do you remember a few years ago when you asked me what makes a man?" he asked.

Ron nodded vigorously. He definitely remembered _that_ adventure quite well. In fact there were some times he wished he could live it down.

"Well I was thinking about that the other day and I realized what I _should_ have said back then. What makes a man is his ability to never back down from the hardships of life. To do what he knows in his heart is right despite what others may think. To face up to his failures and not shrink back from them but rather learn and move on from them." He paused to lay his hands on Ron's shoulders in a show of fatherly pride. "_That_ is what makes a man. You, my son, _are_ that kind of man. And I couldn't be prouder of you."

Ron stared as he took in those words and a few seconds later an almost embarrassed smile crossed his face before he leaned forward to give his father a quick hug. Mr. Stoppable patted his son on the back a few times before they parted.

"Well I'll leave you to whatever you need to do. Just make sure to come down in a bit and spend some time with your mother. Maybe we'll get this all worked out after all," he told him.

The younger Stoppable made the "Okay" sign with his right hand then closed the door after his father left. He then looked down at the package he had been handed and he grinned giddily. Like a kid at Christmas, he tore open the box, shredding the packaging tape that held the cardboard flaps open. He toss it down on his bed, causing Rufus to jump up in surprise, then started to pull articles of clothing out. Without hesitation he shed his usual red jersey and cargo pants and changed into what would become his new mission gear.

In all honestly it really wasn't _that_ much different from what he had worn for many years. It's just now that the cargo pants were black instead of grey and the sleeves of his shirt reached down to his gloves to look more costume like rather than the "off the rack" look that Kim was so fond of. It was also a little tighter to help show of his slightly bulked up physique. While certainly not anywhere near a bodybuilder he was more lanky now rather than gangly like he was before. His training time a Yamanouchi had help him build up a few small muscles and as vain as it sounded he kinda wanted to show them off a bit.

The biggest change of course was the mask the occupied the new clothes. This was were Wade's help came in. It was a variation on the standard ninja mask he had brought home with him but now it had two goggle like lenses sown into it. Course being that it came from Wade they also had the ability to see through different visual spectrums, could magnify, take pictures and had a video connection. And that wasn't even counting the small disk that fit snugly over his right ear and acted as a two way radio and receiver.

After he pulled the mask on, he knelt by his bed and pulled out the Lotus Blade from under it. He slipped the strap over his shoulder and secured it tightly around his chest. He quickly whipped the mystical sword out and started swinging it around as if he were fighting off some mystery opponent. After a few swings he stopped to hold the sword out in front of him and examine it.

_Hmmm...while this thing _is_ ultra cool a sword isn't really KP's style, is it?_ He thought. _Plus I really don't want to hurt anyone _that_ much. Still it's a shame to let it go to waste. Hmmm..._

He stared at the sword for a few seconds as he tried to figure out what to do with it. He snapped his finger when the idea seemed to hit him in a flash. He closed his years in concentration and the blade glowed blue for a second. He opened his eyes again when it was over and examined the newly fashioned blade. To the untrained eye it would look exactly the same, but if one to look closer they would notice the sharp and dull parts of the blade had been reversed.

_Reversed blade sword. Who says you can't learn anything from anime?_ He thought with a smirk.

He then walked over to the mirror on his dresser to examine his new all black, all covering look. Despite the grim exterior it exuded, he wore a giddy smile behind his new mask.

_Ron Stoppable: Ninja Badass. Oh yeah, I definitely like the sounds of that,_ he thought in satisfaction.

**The End**

**Author's Notes: **Alright it's finally the REAL end of this story. I took me almost a YEAR to finally get it all done but it's here! I hope you guys enjoyed this ride and I _really_ hope the next fic I write won't take me nearly as long. As I said before I'm going to try to take a bit of a break from writing but as you can also see from the "Spotlight" chapter I posted yesterday this is easier said than done. For the most part I'm going to stick to simple, fun, easy fics before getting into my next multi chapter fic that will actually be for "The Batman" fandom. I'm sure a few of you out there know what story I'm talking about and for the ones who don't...well you'll just have to wait and see now won't you?

I know I'm evil. But I enjoy it so! Muwhahahaahahahaahhaa!

Please read and review and I'll see you guys on the next fic!


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